Retired NYPD ESU member Randy Miller recounts a remarkable rescue operation involving a man trapped beneath four levels of a collapsed structure.
The victim had been trapped for approximately four days.
Working in extremely confined conditions, rescuers attempted to break through concrete using hammers and chisels. Miller recalls bringing an electric chipping hammer into the collapse void and using his experience to find a way closer to the trapped man.
The work was painstaking. Every bit of progress required coordination, patience, and careful handling of the surrounding debris.
Miller recalls working alongside fellow rescuers, including Jimmy Cole, as they chipped away concrete and removed debris from the narrow space.
At one point, Miller believed they might lose the victim. He describes attempting to establish medical access while confronting the difficult realities of the man’s prolonged entrapment.
And then came the most extraordinary part of the story.
Miller recounts having to break the trapped man’s ankle to get him out, with an even more drastic option being considered if the rescue could not proceed.
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