Brandon Firefighter Sgt. Steve Pappas was among the members of the Oakland County Technical Rescue team that responded to 5700 Rochester Road in Addison Township on April 23 as part of a trench rescue.
Pappas, a 16 year veteran with the department was one of the first to arrive on a construction area where two workers a 42-year old man from St. Clair Shores and a 41-year old man from Eastpointe were buried in about 5 feet of dirt.
‘The man from St. Clair Shores was covered from about his waist up and in a lot of pain when I arrived,? said Pappas, who completed his trench resuce training about five months ago. ‘The man from Eastpointe was deceased.?
‘We administered pain medication and we started digging’the ground was solid clay. Our objective is to shore up the trench and get him out.?
Pappas, said the man was extricated out about 1:30 p.m., and taken to William Beaumount Hospital in Royal Oak with what appeared to be minor injuries.
In addition to Addision Township, firefighters from White Lake Township, Waterford Township, Pontiac, Rochester, Rochester Hills, Auburn Hills, Oakland Township and Independence Township fire departments responded.
‘This was totally a team project,? said Papps. ‘This rescue was my first and the third for the Brandon’s ‘Trench Techs.? Brandon Firefighter Jerry Wivo responded to rescues in Detriot and Bay City.
The Technical Rescue Team is provided a tiered level of response in the event of a natural or man-made disaster or technical wilderness rescue.
About 100 currently are part of the team