Local News

[thomp62301]

proof there is some crazy people in the world

 

 

Man impales himself trying to scale 12-foot York Fair fence

BROCK PARKER The York Dispatch

Article Launched: 09/12/2007 11:16:31 PM EDT

 

 

Firefighters worked for about 45 minutes Wednesday evening to free a man who impaled himself while trying to scale a 12-foot fence to get into the York Fair.

The spiked wrought-iron fence pierced the man's mid left thigh about 6:35 p.m. as he tried to climb over the fence along Carlisle Avenue in West Manchester Township.

 

After emergency workers were finally able to cut the young man loose about 7:20 p.m., he was rushed to York Hospital with a three-foot piece of the fence still stuck through his leg, firefighters said.

 

The man's name has not been released, but when he arrived at the hospital he was immediately taken into the operating room, said David Nichols, chief of the West Manchester Township Fire Department.

 

Nichols said officials believe the man may have had tickets to the Bad Boys of Rock concert at the York Fair in his back pocket.

 

"A lot of the time people don't think about the consequences," Nichols said. "Hopefully this individual can learn from this."

 

After firefighters received a report of the accident, Nichols said emergency workers already at the fair arrived at the scene and found several people trying to help the man, who was stuck at the top of the fence, Nichols said. The man was also trying to hold himself up, officials said.

 

Team rescue: Because the man's wound was so close to major blood vessels in his left leg, firefighters could not pull him off of the fence because they feared that removing the fence paling would make the bleeding injury worse, said John Kottmyer, assistant chief for the York City Fire Department.

About 30 firefighters, 10 emergency medical technicians and workers at the York Fair worked as a team to hold the man up while cutting through several wrought-iron palings to free the man.

 

Some emergency workers propped the man up from the ground while others used two ladder trucks to reach him.

 

Kottmyer said the man was conscious and speaking to firefighters during the rescue despite losing a significant amount of blood.

 

"It had to be sort of methodical," Nichols said of the rescue. "We all worked together as a team."

 

A small crowd of fair-goers and neighbors stood across the street watching the rescue effort and fire police closed Carlisle Avenue next to the fairgrounds.

 

Billie Kline, who lives near the fair, said she saw the man trying to scale the fence, and "the next thing we heard was sirens."

 

"We thought that was a bad idea," Kline said.

 

Nichols said the incident is being ruled an accident. He said West Manchester Township Police were at the scene, but were not going to investigate the incident any further.

 

Gene Schenck, vice president of the York Fair, attributed the failed attempt to jump the fence to the man's age.

 

"Some of the nicest people do dumb things when they're young," Schenck said.

 

Kottmyer said the unique rescue was a "once in a lifetime."

Edited September 14, 2007 by thomp62301 (see edit history)

[fox_forma]

Well damn that sucks. I been to the York County Fair before but I wouldnt scale a iron fence to get it in for any reason.

[Black2003SS]

[Fireman31]

what a moron........

 

[smoke03]

...that looks painfull...ouch