Courtesy Photo Members of the Alpena Fire Department rescue a machine operator in a bulldozer rollover incident at the Holcim-Alpena plant early this morning.

ALPENA — Alpena firefighters responded to an emergency call on Monday night to rescue a man trapped in a bulldozer after it plunged 50 feet into the top of a hill at the Holcim-Alpena Plant.

At approximately 11:58 p.m. on Monday evening, the Holcim-Alpena Plant requested the Alpena Fire Department for a rescue in a bulldozer rollover incident, according to a Tuesday press release.

Upon arrival, crews were advised that a bulldozer working at the top of a pile had slid into a steep gravity-fed funnel of looser stone material fed into a bottom conveyor system. The machine operator was still in the bulldozer, which remained at the bottom of the center of the pile, approximately 50 feet from the top.

When plant personnel contacted the machine operator by radio, the machine operator did not seem to have any life-threatening injuries at the time of contact, the release said.

The agencies involved in the rescue, including the Alpena Combat Readiness Training Center, its fire department, and the Alpena Fire Department, decided to use a unified command to lower a rescuer from a suspended conveyor system into the hole and reach the victim. A lowering and haul system, also known as a high angle rescue procedure, was set up for patient access and removal.

The rescuer was lowered into the hole, accessed the victim, performed a quick assessment, and placed the victim into a harness to prepare for raising out of the hole for treatment and transport, according to the press release.

If the victim had been more gravely injured, they may have sent a Stokes basket rather than putting the victim in a harness, Alpena Fire Chief Rob Edmonds said. A Stokes basket looks similar to a stretcher, but the edges rise up to form a rim, or basket, around the center.

All firefighters at the Alpena Fire Department are trained in the procedure, along with personnel at Holcim and Alpena CRTC, and there are around 30 responders total trained to use the operation, Edmonds said.

While training in the high angle rescue procedure is crucial, situations where the procedure needs to be used are uncommon, he said.

“This is the second time in my 29 years that we have had to use the high angle rescue,” Edmonds said.

Other situations where a high angle rescue could be used include places where people might be stuck in elevated positions, like on construction sites above one story, Edmonds said. The procedure may also be used in industrial incidents and even airplane crashes, if people are stuck in trees, for example.

Using a high angle rescue can be dangerous for both the rescuers and the rescuees involved. Factors that could go wrong include a failed rigging or rope cut on accident.

The rescue efforts at Holcim-Alpena were successful, and the victim was safely removed from the incident and transported to MyMichigan Medical Center Alpena for further care and evaluation. The victim sustained minor injuries, Edmonds said.

The Alpena Fire Department responded with eight on-duty shift personnel, the deputy chief, and the fire chief with two off-duty personnel called in to staff the station.

Also assisting at the scene were the Alpena Police Department, Michigan State Police, Holcim-Alpena plant personnel, and the Alpena County 911 Central Dispatch.

The rescue operation took a total of about four hours.

“It took about 45 minutes to an hour to set up, four minutes to get the rescuer lowered to the patient, and 30 minutes to get the patient out of the hole,” Edmonds said.

The rest of the time was spent planning and cleaning up.

Crews cleared the scene at approximately 4 a.m.

The identity of the victim is unknown at this time.

Reagan Voetberg can be reached at 989-358-5683 or rvoetberg@TheAlpenaNews.com.