Colorado crews rescued a man who had fallen down a sinkhole over the weekend by having a firefighter rappel 30 feet to reach the person.
Leadville/Lake County Fire Rescue received a call shortly after 6 p.m. Saturday about a person trapped in a sinkhole that had opened up at a storage facility in Leadville, KCNC-TV reports. The man had fallen into the 30-foot deep pit while trying to get to his storage unit, the fire department stated in an online update.
When crews evaluated the scene, they discovered significant ice and water at the bottom of the hole, and that created frigid and unstable conditions. As part of the rescue plan, a 24-foot ladder was placed over the top of the hole to let crews get a better view, and firefighter Alex Conlin rappelled down to the man.
Safety gear was attached to a line, which was secured to a fire apparatus in order to keep the man from sinking into the water. Because the man was badly injured, Lake County Search and Rescue was called in to perform a high-angle rescue and pull Conlin and the man out of the hole.
Once out of the hole, the man was taken by ambulance to the airport, and he was airlifted to the hospital. In total, the rescue took about 90 minutes to complete.
“Risk a lot to save a lot, risk a little to save a little, risk nothing to save nothing," Conlin said in a statement.
“Our Department’s (LLCFR) core ideology is 'first in, last out,' and they train and prepare for how best to handle these and many other types of situations," he added.
