On Thursday, a mobile home owner plummeted dozens of feet to the bottom of a septic tank, and Cal Fire rescue workers lowered him and pulled him to safety.
Fontana, 40, fell so deep into a dark hole in the mobile park that rescuers could hear her but couldn’t see her above the surface, officials said.
According to the San Bernardino County Fire Department, she was walking in her yard when the ground beneath her immediately gave way, causing her to fall 25 feet. In a news release.
Crews found a way to pull her out, but had to contend with limited access and a possible cave-in because the soil surrounding the dark hole was not reinforced, officials said.
“Our approach to this was a confined space rescue with potentially a ditch element because this septic tank was not hardened,” the fire department said. spokesperson Eric Sherwin said. he told KTLA.
“Fragments could come loose from those walls and engulf both the victim and any intruder attempting to enter the hole.”
A rope system was thrown together, the rescuers were lowered, and their initial descent was videotaped. posted on social media By department.
Rescuers placed harnesses around the victims and both were pulled from the tank around 11:45 a.m., authorities said.
fire rescue too posted online at that moment The woman was pulled up and returned to the ground.
The woman suffered minor injuries to her lower body and was taken to the hospital.
The State Housing Commission, which manages the mobile home park, inspected the area and fixed access to the septic tank.
No evacuation of any homes was necessary.
