Firefighters had to use a metal cutter and giant airbags Wednesday to rescue a man trapped under a barn collapse.
“Upon our arrival, there was one person that was trapped underneath the trusses,” said Essex Fire Chief Ed Pillon.
“He was conscious, alert, but his lower extremities were pinned underneath some roof trusses with his legs embedded in the ground.”
One man suffered a broken ankle in the collapse. Another had a broken leg. A third man also working at the site wasn’t hurt.
Emergency crews responded shortly after 11 a.m. to the large property on County Road 12 in Essex. Pillon said the call was for a barn collapse with one person trapped.
He said firefighters lifted the debris off the trapped man using airbags and a metal-cutting saw, then slid him onto a back board.
“A second person managed to jump out of the way,” said Pillon. “He had injuries also but he wasn’t trapped.”
Sgt. Dave Dibbley with Essex County OPP said the trio was putting roof trusses on a new barn.
“There were three of them on the trusses trying to stabilize them and straighten them out after putting them up,” said Dibbley. “While they were doing that, about 10 of the trusses came down and brought all three of the guys down.”
He said a building inspector had been there an hour earlier and told them to put in another stabilizing beam, but they hadn’t done it.
An unidentified man walks near a partially collapsed pole barn on County Road 12 in Essex, Ontario on June 26, 2013. Two men who were constructing the barn were transported to hospital after a section collapsed. Essex Fire Service responded and assisted in the rescue of one victim who was trapped under material. (JASON KRYK/The Windsor Star)
Two people injured in barn collapse on County Road 12. http://t.co/qw7olvV29n—
Trevor Wilhelm (@WinStarWilhelm) June 26, 2013
Find Windsor Star on FacebookOne of two people injured are transported to hospital after a barn under construction collapsed in Essex. http://t.co/S12UAWTxqU—
Jason Kryk (@JKryk) June 26, 2013
