A Waiheke Island man suffered excruciating injuries when the
ladder he was on collapsed, twisting his legs and trapping
them between the rungs.
Waiheke Island chief fire officer Ron Leonard said the man
was checking the levels of a water tank on the roof of St
Peter's Catholic Church in Oneroa when the ladder fell
shortly before 10am.
Both his legs became tightly wedged between the rungs of the
ladder, which was lying on top of him.
One leg had twisted around completely and the other also
looked dislocated.
He also appeared to have badly injured his shoulder in the
fall.
"He was in a lot of pain. He was conscious but he was just
groaning. It looked excruciating,'' Mr Leonard said.
His legs were so tightly trapped that firefighters had to use
cutting equipment to free them.
It took about 45 minutes to get him to a waiting rescue
helicopter, which flew him to Auckland Hospital.
People at the scene were baffled as to how he had ended up in
the awkward position.
The top of A-frame step ladder was resting on the ground
while the legs were up on the church's verandah.
It was possible the ladder's supports had not been properly
fixed, Mr Leonard said.
The man was a member of the church.
- Matthew Theunissen, APNZ
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