Oct. 30 -- A man was rescued from a collapsed trench in a backyard on Billings' far West End Monday evening.
The man was working at the site with at least one other person when a trench collapsed on him, inundating him with soil, according to Billings Fire Department Battalion Chief Ed Regel. The co-worker partially dug him out then call 911.
Firefighters, who are trained for trench rescues, used devices called shoring boards and struts to keep the trench walls stable as they dug the man out. The process took about an hour.
Regel estimated that the trench was about 10 feet at its deepest, but that the man was on a "shelf" at a level of about 6 feet.
“It’s fairly labor intensive,” Regel said. "(But) this whole thing went surprisingly well and surprisingly quick.”
The man was conscious throughout the rescue but reported shoulder, back and chest pain. He was taken to a hospital by ambulance.
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