There are many reasons why you might want to call the fire department. Your house might be on fire, or a petrol tanker may have just overturned. Or, like this one driver of a Ford F-150, you might be stuck 10 feet in the air and in serious need of rescue.
This came to our attention thanks to a Facebook post from Station 41 of the Wolfhurst Fire Department in Bridgeport, Ohio. The agency readily admits it doesn’t often post about incidents that it responds to, but this one was simply too noteworthy to ignore.
It all went down on the evening of August 25. The fire department was called to a vehicular accident, wherein a Ford truck had somehow wound up stuck 10 feet in the air. The driver was inside, unharmed, but unable to get down as the vehicle was incredibly unstable. The job for the fire crew? Steady the truck so the driver could climb to safety.
Photos posted by the fire department tell some but not all of the story. The images show us that large telescoping struts were used to secure the vehicle and prevent it from rocking side to side. Wheel chocks were also employed on the rear wheels, along with chains and ratchet straps which helped to create a tight frame of support underneath the truck. This allowed the driver to exit the vehicle without it tipping as their weight moved to one side.
The fire department reports no one was injured in the incident or during the rescue. Amazingly, the driver was not only unharmed but was able to drive the F-150 away afterward, indicating both they and the truck suffered minimal to no damage.
There’s just one thing the fire department left out—how did the truck end up in the air in the first place? It appears the driver drove up guy wires or support cables for a telephone and/or power cable pole, and given the incident occurred at night, it’s plausible the driver simply didn’t see the cables.
The Autopian has contacted Station 41 for more information, and will update this article accordingly.
Ultimately, this incident teaches us multiple things. For a start, Ford trucks apparently pretty darn resilient in cases like these. Furthermore, it’s best to wait for assistance if you find you and your car stuck ten feet in the air and wobbling. Stay safe out there!
Image credits: Wolfhurst Fire Department – Station 41
I would have been out checking the underside for rust and bad ball joints. Last time I checked that was not the service procedure for draining fluids.
No comment that this truck was trying to park where parking was not designated? I’m guessing the parking lot was filling up and he tried to be creative with his parking choice? Why did he not slow down when his front end started going up?
Too many questions.
flying cars STILL 2 years away
As usual, the russian dashcams have been there, done that…
https://youtu.be/ZO-kL4Lcl0g?t=12
Meh, that truck wasn’t unstable. It was sitting on it’s back end just fine. The driver could have easily scrambled out and dropped down the four feet from the door. The bumper may have been ten feet up, not the whole thing. Just look at the crouching fireperson.
That said, I might have been crippled by fear too after running up that guy wire. Although I might just have backed down the wire as well.
I wonder if there’s a police report on this event.
Yes, but how does the Cybertruck handle this challenge?
I can’t make out the badge. Is this the new F150 Vector or the Lightning?