A Second Avenue subway construction worker was freed early Wednesday morning after being stuck waist-deep in “muck” for four hours Tuesday night in an underground tunnel.
More than 100 emergency workers were called to the scene after the worker became trapped about 8:30 p.m. in a tunnel 75 feet underground near the corner of Second Avenue and 95th Street.
The man was finally freed at about 12:40 a.m. after responders worked for hours to remove debris from around the man in order to extract him from the mud. Con Edison brought an industrial vacuum to help suck out the debris.
An assistant fire chief said the man had somehow gotten his foot stuck in a frame used in the construction and sank into the mud.
The fire department posted a video on Twitter of the man emerging from the ground. [videoembed id=123730]
The worker, who was not identified, was conscious the whole time and taken to an ambulance immediately following the rescue. He likely suffered from hypothermia, the New York Times reported. Swaddled in blankets, he was pulled out of the ground in a yellow basket suspended by a crane.
Three firefighters were also injured during the treacherous rescue, according to news reports.