Vacuum trucks aren’t only useful for things like potholing underground utilities or cleaning sewers. Recently, they were a valuable part of a rescue operation in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
Darrell Benish got trapped inside a large grain bin containing corn.
“I was trying to push the auger in with my foot and it slipped,” Benish told local TV station KCRG. “The suction sucked me in there, and nobody saw what happened. It felt like my leg was being crushed by a vice with all the pressure from the corn.”
Benish was covered up to his shoulders for about two hours. First responders successfully employed specialized isolation panels to isolate Benish and prevent more corn from completely covering him.
“I couldn’t even breathe,” Benish said. “They put that insert around me to keep the corn from covering my body, but it was the most pain I’ve felt in my life.”
First responders cut four holes in the side of the bin to release as much corn as possible. That’s where vacuum trucks courtesy of Cedar Rapids Public Works also came in for an assist. The trucks were used to gradually remove the corn trapping Benish and eventually freeing him.
Source: Dig Different Online (digdifferent.com)
(Photo Credit from Cedar Rapids Fire Department)
