San Francisco firefighters rescue person trapped inside garbage truck

By Carlos E. Castañeda

A person trapped inside a garbage truck in San Francisco was rescued early Wednesday morning, the fire department said.

The incident happened near the Powell Street BART station. The San Francisco Fire Department said crews were dispatched at 4:11 a.m. to a report of a person trapped inside a Recology garbage truck on Mason Street near Eddy Street. The truck driver had been flagged down and told there was someone yelling from inside the garbage area of the truck, the department said. 

It was unclear if the male person was sleeping in a dumpster when he was picked up and dropped into the truck’s trash compactor. 

More than 20 firefighters spent more than an hour working to remove all the garbage piled on top of the victim and extricate him from the truck. The person appeared limp when he was finally pulled out, but was conscious and speaking with firefighters. He was taken to the hospital and his condition was unknown.

One firefighter was also slightly injured with a laceration that required stitches.