TRENTON, Mich. – A 42-year-old man was rescued from an icy pond Wednesday morning after suffering a medical emergency while operating an excavator at a construction project in Trenton, police said.
The man was working at the Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge on West Jefferson when he lost consciousness and control of the excavator, police said. The excavator broke through the ice in a retention pond and was partially submerged.
“There’s a gentleman stuck in an excavator. He’s trapped. He’s in the pond," a witness told a 911 operator.
Listen to 911 calls here:
Police said two of the man’s coworkers jumped in to help stop the excavator -- and one of them broke his own leg.
A forklift was used to bring the workers back to land and to get firefighters and police out to help rescue the man.
The man, who is a Monroe resident, is in critical condition at Beaumont Hospital in Trenton.