Additional Coverage:
- Video shows dramatic rescue of crying Kansas toddler from bottom of narrow, 10-foot hole (newsbreak.com)
A police officer’s quick thinking in central Kansas led to the rescue of a 14-month-old boy trapped in a deep, narrow pipe, with the tense moments captured on camera.
Upon arriving at the scene on Sunday afternoon, first responders found a distressed toddler crying loudly at the bottom of a 12-inch wide PVC pipe, approximately 10 to 12 feet underground, according to a press release from the Moundridge Police Department on Tuesday.
Parents of the toddler, named Bentley, had dialed 911 just before 2 p.m. after noticing that Bentley had accidentally fallen into the hole while playing outside their home in Moundridge, roughly 40 miles northwest of Wichita, as reported by KSNW-TV.
Describing the incident, Bentley’s father, Blake, who chose not to reveal his full name, shared his feelings of utter despair with the station. “Looking down at him screaming, he wanted out of there; he wanted help, and I couldn’t do anything. It’s horrifying and haunting to feel so helpless when your child seriously needs help,” said Blake.
Dramatic bodycam footage from the police vividly shows the rescue, with a tearful Bentley being carefully lifted from the pipe by the responders, who reassuringly said, “Nice and easy,” as they managed to grasp an arm and then safely returned him to his worried parents.
Key to the rescue was Officer Ronnie Wagner of the Moundridge Police Department, who ingeniously crafted a “catch pole” using a smaller PVC pipe and rope. This ingenious device proved to be crucial in lifting Bentley to safety. Wagner explained that he created the tool by threading a rope through the pipe and securing a knot at the end to loop under Bentley’s arms, enabling the responders to pull him up from the hole.
Thanks to the resourceful actions of the first responders, Bentley, though shaken, was found to be unharmed. The police department expressed its gratitude towards all the emergency personnel for their prompt and effective measures that helped avert a potentially tragic outcome.
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