A maintenance worker was rescued by firefighters Friday morning after he fell into an underground water reservoir and broke his leg, San Diego Fire Rescue reported.
The male victim apparently slipped and fell off a ladder approximately 20 feet into the tank at 8910 University Center Lane after doing maintenance on the inside of the reservoir, San Diego Fire Rescue Battalion Chief Mike Finnerty said.
The Heavy Rescue Team sent in two rescuers to stabilize and remove the man. He was taken to a hospital by ambulance for a broken leg.
Finnerty said the man went in with a partner to coat the inside of the tank - which holds at least 10,000 gallons of water for the building's fire protection systems. The paint of epoxy the men were using posed risks from the fumes inside, so hazmat and heavy rescue were called in.
Finnerty commended the victim's partner for staying outside and calling 9-1-1 instead of reentering the reservoir.
"You do not want to reenter one of these tanks because you don't know why the person fell," he said. "There's been a lot of rescuers killed rushing into tanks to try and rescue someone and the reason a person needs rescuing is there's a lack of air in the tank."
