Man rescued from grain bin
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| Firefighters, farmers from miles around and more sprang into action Monday afternoon after a man was trapped in this huge silo at Olson Farms in Copeland. |
| Photo courtesy of Jacob Bushnell, http://www.watchidaho.net |
The call to 911 came in around 1:35 p.m., and within moments firefighters from Hall Mountain Fire, ambulance crews, sheriff's deputies and Border Patrol agents were racing to the scene. When they arrived, more than 60 people, area farmers and their families mostly, were already there to help.
"It was impressive how many people came and how quickly they responded," said Sheriff Greg Sprungl, who, like many, could only stand back and watch the rescue effort. "It took a lot of work, it wasn't an easy job. I have to compliment the fire crew and farmers, they did an incredible job."
According to Hall Mountain Fire Chief Brad Louther, farm crews were loading wheat from the silo onto trucks when an auger inside clogged.
Jim Sheldon went into the silo to clear the jam, but when the plug broke loose, Jim was buried in wheat up to his waist, and initial attempts to free him only sucked him down further.
Inside the silo, the sides slope in, forming a funnel and pulling everything inside, including Jim, down.
"It was like quicksand," Louther said. "By the time I got there, they had him tied off, but Jim was buried up to his shoulders. He was taking it pretty well, a lot better than most would in that situation, but it was pretty scary."
In addition to a lot of sweat and effort, getting him out took a lot of ingenuity, too.
"We tried hoisting him up with a come-along, but he wouldn't budge," Louther said. "The harder we pulled, the worse it got."
Replacing the rope with a sling to keep Jim's head above the wheat, crews initially considered disassembling a part of the silo, a task that would have taken hours. Instead, they decided to try another trick.
Cutting both ends out of a large plastic barrel, they placed over Jim and used a shop vacuum to suck out the wheat, slowly inching the barrel deeper. Eventually, they had enough wheat removed from around Jim that, using another plastic barrel they cut for the job, they were able to insert it behind Jim and pull him to safety.
"He's a lucky feller," Louther said. "Bob, Dustin and Eric Olson were right there when it happened, and were able to keep him from going completely under, and a lot of help arrived shortly thereafter."
In all, Louther estimates that Sheldon was trapped in the grip of the grain for nearly four hours before being pulled free, unhurt.
"We're grateful it turned out well," Sprungl said. "When something like this happens, farmers and neighbors stand together. They deserve a lot of credit."