By MES Dispatch staff
The Briefing
• Fort Worth firefighters rescued a crane operator more than 200 feet above ground after he experienced a medical emergency at a construction site May 6.
• The department’s Tactical Rescue Team responded and provided medical care at the crane cab.
• Fire crews lowered the man to the top of a nearby parking garage using rope-rescue techniques.
• He was then transported by ambulance to a hospital; no responders were injured.
• The rescue took nearly two hours and involved specialized high-angle rescue training.
FORT WORTH, TEXAS — Firefighters from the Fort Worth Fire Department responded May 6 to a construction site where a crane operator suffered a medical emergency while inside the crane cab more than 200 feet above the ground on the 1300 block of South Main Street.
Personnel from the department’s Tactical Rescue Team provided emergency medical care at the scene and determined the man was unable to climb down the crane ladder due to his condition.
Crews established a high-angle rescue and used rope-lowering techniques to bring the man safely to the top of a nearby parking garage under construction, officials said.
Once on the ground, he was transferred to an ambulance and taken to a local hospital for further treatment; no firefighters were reported injured during the operation.
The rescue spanned nearly two hours and involved coordination between ground crews and members trained in rope and technical rescue operations at height.