WATKINS, Colo. (TMX) – A teenage boy was rescued Wednesday after falling approximately 50 feet into an abandoned missile silo in Colorado, officials said.
Sable Altura Fire Rescue said its crews responded to assist Bennett-Watkins Fire Rescue on a report of a juvenile that had fallen 40 to 50 feet into a missile silo near E. Quincy Avenue south of Watkins in Arapahoe County shortly before 4 p.m. Wednesday.
Sable Altura Fire Rescue crews built a rope system to lower two crew members into “what is believed to be the exhaust vent tunnel of a [decommissioned] Titan Missile Facility.”
After assessing the boy’s injuries, rescuers put him in a harness. Bennett-Watkins and Sable Altura Fire Rescue personnel, assisted by South Metro Fire Rescue, then hoisted the boy back to the surface along with the rescue team.
Sable Altura Fire Rescue said the rescue was completed quickly thanks to strong partnerships and “fantastic command structure” between the three neighboring agencies. They also reminded members of the public about the dangers of abandoned military infrastructure in the state.
“A reminder…the military history on the eastern plains of Colorado, is better left to the history books,” SAFR said. “PLEASE do not think for any moment, that these are safe environments to enter or explore.”
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