Trackhoe Rolls 100 Feet Down Sammamish Ravine
The heavy equipment turned into a huge steel trap with the operator inside as it rolled several times, slid part of the way, and then got stuck in some trees.
The man started to get out of the cab, but co-workers yelled to stay put because the trackhoe wasn't stable.
Right then, it slipped again, this time over a cliff.
"He had to ride that out," says Josie Williams of Eastside Fire and Rescue. "And that's pretty tough for somebody to sit there knowing they're going to have to ride out another 35 feet, especially with the sheer drop off that they had there."
Getting the man back up the steep embankment was a slow, tedious process. The rescue team hoisted him up on a stretcher, emerging from the woods after an hour.
Amazingly, his injuries are minor.
The man was about to dig up a pipeline for maintenance, when the trackhoe slid off a wooden mat that's supposed to keep it stable.
Greg Reich is the Assistant District Manager for Williams Pipeline.
"A trackhoe is a steeled, tracked device similar to a tank," Reich explains. "And it slid right off the mats due to the conditions, I suppose. Down the hill he went."
The pipeline company will investigate.
So will Labor and Industries. As for the worker, he was able to give rescuers a wave as medics loaded him into the ambulance.
"He's very fortunate," says Williams. "Bumps and bruises and I'm sure he'll be uncomfortable for a few days, but very, very fortunate."
Medics took the man to Overlake Medical Center in Bellevue. Privacy regulations mean we can't find out his condition.