GRANDVIEW, Iowa — The Muscatine Fire Department rescued a worker trapped inside a chimney at MidAmerican Engery’s Louisa Generating Station in Grandview. The worker was stuck inside an industrial elevator basket about 230 feet up the 621 foot chimney.
The rescue took a total of about six hours, says the department, and was an “extremely dangerous and critical high angle rope rescue that was performed for the first time under these conditions at these heights outside of departmental training events.”
The Hazardous Incident Response Team used ropes and climbing equipment to lower a fire department rescuer to the trapped employee, which took three hours in high heat and low visibility.
The trapped worker was dehydrated and exhausted, but uninjured, reports the fire department. One fire fighter suffered a minor injury.
The Muscatine Fire Department was assisted by the Grandview Fire Department, Louisa County Ambulance, and the Louisa County Sheriff Department.
