Grain bin rescue in Livingston County
GRIDLEY – A person trapped in a grain bin northeast of Gridley in rural Livingston County has been removed from the bin.
Information posted online by the Normal Fire Department Thursday evening indicated the victim was transported to an area hospital in stable condition.
Emergency responders worked throughout the day to help at the scene near 600 East Road. MABAS Division 25 Technical Rescue Team was called in to help from LaSalle and a light tower was used. Firefighters worked to empty the grain to free the victim.
“It is a delicate operation because if the grain shifts in the wrong direction, it could envelop the patient further or bury the rescuers,” said a Facebook post from the Normal Fire Department.
A ladder truck from Pontiac was observed at the scene as several local fire departments responded.
The National Ag Safety Database reports it takes only a few seconds to become trapped in flowing grain and within another 10 seconds, a person can be completely submerged. Victims are commonly engulfed while walking across the grain surface while unloading a bin.
A recent annual report from Purdue University’s Agricultural Safety and Health Program indicated there were 30 documented grain entrapments in the United States during 2021 with almost 60 percent of those resulting in fatality.
