Rescuers Free Worker Trapped Under Collapsed Denver School Ceiling

A construction worker became trapped when a ceiling in the old school building he was working at collapsed. It took firefighters close to an hour to free the man from the debris.

The incident occurred at the old William Byers Junior High School in Denver, Colo. The school is being renovated for the Denver School of Science and Technology, a charter school.   

The victim was working in a small room on the second floor of the building when the ceiling collapsed on him. Large chunks of plaster and concrete fell on top of him. Rescue workers had to work at a very painstakingly methodical pace because of the instability of the rest of the area they were working in. They had to re-enforce the unsteady wall that was still holding up the rest of the area they were attempting to rescue the man from.

After being pulled out of the building, the man was taken to a waiting ambulance and as he was being loaded into the ambulance, he gave a thumb’s up sign to onlookers.

School were ceiling collapsed on worker.

Confined space rescues can be technically challenging because of the dangers they present to not only the victim, but also to the emergency responders attempting the rescue. Whether in a situation created by the collapse of a building or trench or in designated confined spaces such as silos, sewers or tanks, rescue workers must be keenly aware of the necessary strategies needed to perform a confined space rescue.

Emergency Film Group’s Confined Space Rescue Series provides a comprehensive examination of response issues in a confined space emergency. This series addresses the requirements of OSHA's Permit Required Confined Space Standard as well as NFPA 1006 and NFPA 1670. To learn more, read here. . .