Dec. 15--STOCKTON -- A teen boy in Stockton realized he is no Santa. Firefighters had to pull him from his chimney after getting stuck.
Now, firefighters are trying to figure out why 18-year-old Jorge Herrera was in it in the first place.
A Stockton family called for help around 10 a.m. Thursday, after hearing calls for help coming from their chimney along Baker Street.
There's some confusion on how the teen wound up in the chimney. The boy's family said he was cleaning the chimney.
The Stockton Fire Department has another theory.
"He was going to miss his curfew, and then he had climbed down the chimney in an attempt to avoid the wrath of his parents," said Battalion Chief Van Riviere.
Firefighters found the teen stuck just a few feet above the ground, with his feet dangling out of the chimney.
They slipped down some wrist straps, and pulled the teen up the chimney, but he got stuck again. A soapy and greasy substance was needed to free the teen and get him out.
Herrera was not injured, except for his pride.
The chimney is in the teen's room. Because of the conflicting stories, investigators do not know how long the teen was in the chimney.
