Fire Department

One person was transported to the hospital with non-life threatening injuries Friday morning after becoming entangled in a mechanical device.

Firefighters and paramedics were initially dispatched to ShopBop on East Washington Ave. for an unknown issue. While en route, they learned someone was trapped in machinery, prompting the call for additional rescue crews.

Medic 3 made initial contact with the patient, who had his hand trapped in a hydraulic ram/lifting mechanism of the business’s loading dock. He told paramedics he placed his hand on the lifting mechanism to reach under the dock when a chain broke, releasing a brake and causing the dock to spring up and impale his hand.

As Ladder Company 1 set up extrication equipment and stabilized the loading dock, one paramedic/firefighter placed his helmet on the patient’s head for additional protection as they attempted to free him.

Initial attempts to free the patient were unsuccessful. Crews ultimately determined that the safest approach would be to remove the entire four-foot hydraulic ram from the dock. Paramedics would transport the patient to the ER with the ram seated on his lap. Further extrication would take place at the hospital.

Two firefighter/EMTs assisted paramedics in supporting the ram as Medic 3 began emergency medical treatment and transported the patient to UW Hospital.