Oregon Man Rescued From Collapsed Trench

March 03--A man trapped in a caved-in utility trench was rescued after about three hours stuck in dirt and mud Monday in the 12000 block of Southwest Bowmont Street in Cedar Hills.

The man, who was trapped about 15 feet below the surface, was taken to Legacy Emanuel Medical Center. His medical condition was not released. Two other workers from Apollo Excavation who were also in the trench were not taken to the hospital.

The men were not identified.

Leonard Gebbie, whose home faces the trench, said two workers were replacing a sewer line when dirt collapsed onto them. A third worker went in to help them, Gebbie said.

Firefighters from Tualatin Valley Fire & Rescue and Portland Fire & Rescue arrived at the scene just before 11 a.m.; close to 40 emergency responders eventually were at the scene.

One worker was able to free himself. Crews extricated a second man quickly, but the third was stuck in waist-high mud and dirt. Responders had to create tools to aid in the rescue. A City of Portland truck arrived to suction mud and dirt out of the trench.

Rain started to come down hard as emergency crews continued working to rescue the man, forcing them to put a tent and a blue tarp over the trench and bring in an extra lamp.

Meanwhile, the man, who had mentioned problems with feeling his legs, was given oxygen and sports drinks by emergency responders who took turns going into the trench to assist him and check his pulse. Crews also lowered an IV bag in a bucket. The man remained alert and conscious, at one point even helping dig out the dirt.

When the man was free, the emergency responders clapped and then lowered a combined harness and backboard into the trench. The man was strapped to the harness-backboard and emergency responders used a crank to lift him to the surface.

Gebbie said watching the man get pulled out of the trench was "like I just won the lottery.

"When I saw him get pulled out of there, and give us all a wave, that's truly what it felt like," Gebbie said.

-- Everton Bailey Jr.

Copyright 2014 - The Oregonian, Portland, Ore.