Man trapped in crane-fall ordeal

A MAN was taken to the Royal Oldham Hospital after a two-ton crane fell on his feet in the early hours of this morning.

The 44-year-old was working in a Shaw warehouse when the incident happened at around 1am, trapping toes on both his feet.

Oldham fire crews and a heavy-lifting team were alerted after an emergency call from the man's work partner. The ambulance rapid response team also attended.

Oldham fire watch manager Ben McDermott said: "We were called to a major entrapment.

"The man had been changing the electrics on the low-level crane.

"We understand that as he was stood on the beam, the circuitry of the crane dropped down and trapped his feet.

"Luckily he was wearing steel toe-capped shoes which saved his toes from being chopped off.

"He was in severe pain and suffered possible partial amputation to one toe."

The crews blocked off and isolated the crane so it could not drop any further, then used lifting equipment, an air bag and web spreading to lift the crane off the man's feet.