A construction worker, who was walking backwards out of an apartment, fell into a trench in Gilbert on Wednesday afternoon.
According to the Gilbert Fire Department, the 47-year-old man fell into the 7 foot deep trench that is about 5 feet wide. The construction site is located near Ray Road and San Tan Village Parkway.
Air15 15 video showed the man pulled out by rescue workers on a stretcher after they secured the trench. He flashed a big smile as he emerged above ground. The rescue took two hours.
"Everything slows way way down for us," Gilbert Fire Capt. Gary Hildebrandt said. "To just rush in there and cause secondary collapse and possibly crush the patient and our workers is just not not what we do."
After 2 hour ordeal, injured construction worker has been rescued from trench at Gilbert construction site. #abc15 #GilbertAZ @MarnieMarns
— Melissa Blasius (@MelissaBlasius) April 27, 2016
Firefighters say the man was conscious, alert and breathing, but had lower back pain when they arrived. He was reported to be in stable condition when the ambulance took him to the hospital.
ABC15 has learned there was a OSHA complaint after a different construction worker accident on the site in February. Gilbert fire officials say a worker fell from the third floor to the second floor of a building under construction. ABC15 called Renaissance Residential construction company requesting comment about the injuries, but those phone calls were not returned.
Stay with ABC15 and ABC15.com for updates.
