WATERFORD (WWJ) - A contractor worker was safely pulled from a Pontiac sewer last week after he was swept downstream while making repairs roughly 25 feet below ground.
Waterford Fire Chief Matt Covey said firefighters, with assistance from Oakland County Sheriff Deputies and first responders with Star Ambulance, made the rescue when were called out to the scene at 600 West Walton Blvd. in Pontiac last Wednesday, Sept. 6.
According to Covey, a contractor making repairs to a sewer system in the area was swept several hundred feet downstream before he managed to stop himself.
“The individual was able to grab hold of a step near the next manhole several hundred feet down stream. Where he was found shortly after was roughly 20 to 25 feet. below the ground,” Covey told the Oakland Press.
Firefighters were able to get a rope down to the man, whose name has not been released, and pulled him up and out of sewer to safety.
The worker was shaken up, but uninjured, Covey added.
Michigan Michigan Occupational Safety and Health Administration (MIOSHA) is currently conducting an investigation into the incident.