A worker laying sewer lines for a new subdivision in Bolingbrook was injured Monday morning and had to be rescued from a 10-foot deep trench by firefighters who had to shore up muddy walls to reach him.
The man, who was not identified, was airlifted to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, Bolingbrook Fire Department officials said.
The man was conscious during the rescue, but fire officials said they did not know the extent of his injuries. He apparently was working in the trench when he was injured and then could not get out on his own, they said.
A Loyola spokeswoman would not release his condition, citing patient privacy laws. But Brian Brunhofer, president of Pulte Homes of Illinois, which is developing the site, said the worker, an employee of subcontractor Ruffalo and Sons, did not suffer serious injuries.
“We continue to work with the contractor to make sure this does not happen again,” Brunhofer said.
About 50 specially trained rescue workers from Bolingbrook, Naperville and other municipalities helped remove the worker from the trench along the Augusta Village subdivision, at Weber Road and 111th Street, said Bolingbrook Fire Chief Chuck Peterson.
The rescue took more than 1 1/2 hours because the muddy ground meant the walls of the trench had to be fortified before the man could be removed, Peterson said.
“We didn’t want to make things worse,” he said. “It was a safe, well-run operation.”
