[Photos below.] Emergency crews pulled a worker to safety after he fell into an empty 18-foot cesspool hole in East Hills, Long Island. Mario Flores, 37, was stuck in the hole for more than 4 hours. A second man who was tryin to help the first also got trapped, but was quickly rescued.
Dozens of firefighters worked to shore up the hole and rig a pulley to save Flores. He was conscious and alert when he came out of the hole. Responders loaded him into an ambulance at about 3:50 p.m. and took him to a local hospital.
Officials said he was listed in stable condition and was evaluated for possible hypothermia and containment disease.
In order to help free Flores, a vacuum truck was positioned into the cesspool to suck up dirt and sand. Workers placed wood planks across the opening because the walls of the hole are unstable and could collapse, firefighters said.
Officials evacuated the nearby Harbor Hill Elementary School in Roslyn when a medevac helicopter landed on school grounds, according to a phone message from the district, the Post reported.
A cesspool is a pit used for receiving drainage or sewage, usually from a house.
Flores, of Brentwood, was digging the large hole when a dirt wall collapsed on top of him.
East Hills is a village in the greater Rosyln area of Nassau County.
For photos of the rescue, see below:
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{MyFoxNY/Noam Amdurski-Matzav.com Newscenter}
