Stamford firefighters pull off two daring rescues in one day
STAMFORD, Conn. -- First responders rescued a woman trapped under a bus on Tuesday afternoon, and a woman who fell under a train a few hours later.
The incidents happened just three miles apart. On Wednesday, CBS2's Tony Aiello spoke with firefighters about their busy day doing dangerous work.
"Sometimes, you come in and everything happens. Yesterday was just one of those days," Stamford Fire Department Capt. Brian Ohleth said.
It was indeed for firefighters in the Fairfield County city.
First, a woman was struck by a Connecticut Transit bus. She fell and was pinned underneath.
"She appeared to be in her late 20s. She was talking, which was a great sign, but she was compressed between the front axel of the bus and the asphalt below, so we knew it was a dire situation for her and something that required us to act very, very quickly," Deputy Chief Matt Palmer said.
Luckily, the Stamford Fire Department trains every week for situations like this. A team used an air bottle to pump 5,500 PSI into rubber bladders. Aiello stood on two of them to feel the lift as they inflated.
It took just nine minutes for the pressurized bladders to be set up and lift the bus just enough to rescue the trapped woman.
"As we were lifting, she was like, 'I feel it. The weight's coming off, the weight's coming off.' You know, it wasn't hurting her anymore," Firefighter Nick DeAngelo said.
Just hours later, another rescue was pulled off at the Springdale Metro-North station. A woman fell into the gap between the platform and train.
Responding firefighters crawled down to help.
"Crawled under the train and over the tracks to access the patient. They put her in the stokes basket and sent her out," Ohleth said.
It's always a danger to crawl under a train, even when the power has been cut. Stamford firefighters made their second dramatic rescue of the day.
"The training, experience, and the dedication of the members comes together," Palmer said.
The department's motto is on the side of the rig: "Our family protecting your family."
That pledge was certainly upheld on Tuesday.
