D.C. Fire and EMS rescued a man from a garbage chute in a Gallery Place building in the early hours of Sunday morning.

While throwing out the trash, an adult man thought he may have accidentally tossed out his girlfriend’s cellphone, says FEMS spokesperson Vito Maggiolo. He was peering into the chute and using a hand to brace himself when his hand slipped and he fell in.

The man tumbled the equivalent of one floor before he caught himself, says Maggiolo. He slid until he reached the top of the trash that was already in the chute.

D.C. FEMS received a call shortly after 3 a.m. on July 23. It took the special operations team about an hour for the rescue, using the “harness and haul” technique, by which they pulled him up through the chute.

The man was evaluated on scene and did not have injuries from the incident.

“Special operations people find ourselves in all kinds of unique challenges,” says Maggiolo. “You never know what you’re going to encounter.”

Filed Under: cell phone, dc fems, gallery place, rescue,