From Kansas comes the story of a quick-thinking rescue that hauled a 14-month-old toddler from a would-be tomb at the bottom of a drain pipe.
The terrifying ordeal was caught on camera and saw a Moundridge Police Department officer build on the spot a makeshift catchpole typically used for pulling varmints out of hard-to-reach places.
Secured under his shoulders, the loop of rope at the end of the catchpole was able to haul the boy, named Bently, out from where he was trapped 10 feet down a section of 12-inch-wide PVC pipe that had been buried vertically.
In certain fits of frustration, it’s entirely possible, especially in the South, that a parent should refer to a rambunctious and recalcitrant 2-year-old as a varmint. Fortunately for Bently, he was still the size of a varmint, and so the varmint-catching tech proved lifesaving.
The parents said they called 911 just before 2 p.m. when they realized Bently had fallen into the PVC hole.
“Looking down at him as he was screaming, he wanted out of there, he wanted help and you can’t do anything. Just complete helplessness,” Blake, the boy’s father, told the local news station covering the rescue. “It’s horrifying, it’s haunting, to feel so helpless knowing that your child is in serious need of help.”
When police, fire department, and EMS arrived at the family’s home in Moundridge, about 40 miles northwest of Wichita, Officer Ronnie Wagner had an idea. He obtained a long thin section of PVC from the paramedics, threaded a rope through the length of it, and tied a knot on one side.
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He was making a tool typically used by animal control officers and thought it would serve the same purpose here.
In dramatic footage of the rescue, the officers can be seen negotiating the loop of rope at the end of the pole around the boy before gently lifting him to safety after a 15 to 20-minute ordeal.
“We are relieved to report that the child, while understandably shaken, was unharmed,” the department said. Police thanked “all the first responders for their swift and effective action, which transformed a dangerous situation into a successful rescue.”
WATCH the rescue below…
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