Most of us complain about our jobs when the coffee machine breaks or a meeting runs long. Somewhere in Wilmington, Illinois, one gas station sign maintenance worker would probably trade places with any of us in a heartbeat after Tuesday. What started as a routine repair job turned into an hours-long ordeal 130 feet above the ground, with half the local fire department watching from below.
The incident happened at a gas station on Lorenzo Road, ABC 7 Eyewitness News reported, where the worker was performing maintenance on the massive sign around 11 a.m. Somewhere along the way, the lift he used to get up there ran into a mechanical issue, and suddenly getting back down wasn’t as simple as it should have been. To make matters worse, there’s no ladder built into the structure, so climbing out under his own power wasn’t an option either.
That left the man stuck inside a sign taller than most apartment buildings while emergency crews scrambled to figure out how to get him down safely. A significant police and fire response descended on the scene, and a crane eventually rolled in to handle the job the broken lift couldn’t finish. If you’ve ever driven past a gas station sign and thought “that thing is enormous,” you now have proof that someone has to climb up and service it every so often, and it is not a job for the faint of heart.
For hours, the man could be seen from the ground, and news helicopters even caught aerial footage of him waiting it out inside the sign. It’s the kind of scene that stops traffic, and probably a few conversations at the pump, as drivers looked up and wondered exactly how someone plans to get down from a spot like that.
A Long Wait With No Easy Way Down
With no ladder inside the sign and the lift out of commission, there wasn’t a quick fix available. Crews had to bring in equipment capable of reaching the top of the structure, which takes time to position and set up safely, especially with a person’s life depending on getting it right.
Patience isn’t glamorous, but it’s often the smartest tool in a rescue like this.
Crane to the Rescue
Just before 4 p.m., roughly five hours after the trouble began, the worker climbed into the crane’s basket and was slowly lowered to solid ground.
Slow and steady clearly won this race, and it’s hard to imagine a more satisfying moment than finally feeling pavement under your boots again.
Checked Out and Sent Home
Once he was down, the man was placed into a Wilmington Fire Department ambulance for evaluation. No word yet on the extent of any injuries, but the fact that he was able to get into the crane basket himself is a promising sign.
Gas station signs are supposed to catch your eye from the highway, not become the site of a five-hour rescue mission. This one certainly delivered on visibility, just not in the way anyone signs up for.