At about 1:00 PM, Tuesday, September 19, 2006, fire/EMS units from the Forestville/Upper Marlboro areas were alerted for a report of two unconscious workers in a sewer.
Firefighters, paramedics, technical rescue team, and command officers were dispatched to a new home construction site in the 10100 Block of Marlboro Pike. Upon arrival they discovered two workers unconscious in the bottom of a 15-20 foot sewer shaft.
The street manhole was the only way in and only way out of this shaft. One of the workers was partially submerged in a fluid product at the bottom of the sewer.
Quick thinking and fast actions by a cadre of first responders assisted in the successful rescue of the two unconscious workers. The first arriving units were firefighters from Forestville Fire/EMS Station 23 and the Fire/EMS Departments Breathing Air Unit (BA45), operated by Public Service Aide Bill Hawkins.
Typically, BA45 responds to major fires and reports to fire/EMS stations throughout the county filling firefighters breathing apparatus bottles with fresh air. BA45 was in the immediate area when the call was dispatched and responded in a very timely fashion.
Immediately upon arrival, Bill Hawkins deployed a high pressure breathing air supply line into the sewer and thereby supplying large amounts of fresh air to the two unconscious men. Almost immediately, one of the workers responded to the fresh air and started to respond.
He became conscious enough that when firefighters lowered a rescue rope, he was able to fasten the rope around his still unconscious coworker.
Firefighters hoisted the victim to street level whereas paramedics started to evaluate the patient. The patient showed no signs of life and paramedics initiated aggressive advanced life support measures and transported him to the closest available hospital.
Firefighters dropped the rescue rope again to the still semiconscious worker still in the sewer. He was able to secure the rescue line around his body and firefighters hoisted him to the street level where paramedics started to treat his injuries.
The Maryland State Police Helicopter was called in and transported this 50ish year old male to an area trauma center.
A third patient, a coworker that entered the sewer to attempt a rescue before the Fire/EMS Department arrival was transported to an area hospital for evaluation.
Having no signs of life upon initial contact with paramedics, the first victim, a male in his 20s, was revived by those paramedics and hospital emergency room staff. He is listed in critical and stable condition. The second victim is listed in serious and stable condition. The third patient is listed in good condition. When informed of the incident Fire Chief Lawrence H. Sedgwick, Jr., "Teamwork was key in this rescue whereas two lives were saved."
State of Maryland Occupational Safety and Health (MOSH) and the Fire/EMS Departments Hazardous Materials Team worked together in an attempt to identify why readings from an atmospheric meter were picking up on levels of a flammable product.
Despite no visible evidence or detectable odor of a flammable product, atmospheric meters detected the presence. Samples were obtained and tests will be conducted by MOSH over the next few days.
