Woman Fighting for Life After Falling 16 Stories Down Garbage Chute in 'Mental Health' Episode
A woman in Oregon was pulled from a trash collection bin at a Portland condo with life-threatening injuries after falling 16 stories down the building’s garbage chute on Monday, PEOPLE confirms.
The woman, whose name has not been made public, was believed to be visiting her significant other at the building when she fell down the chute and sustained severe injuries to her head and neck, Portland Fire & Rescue spokesman Rich Chatman tells PEOPLE.
“[The 911 caller] said she was down near the garbage collection area and she was barely conscious,” Chatman says. “We have reason to believe there was a mental health component involved.”
It is unclear why exactly the woman entered the chute.
Authorities got the call around 12:20 p.m. and rescuers carefully removed her from the bin, working to not worsen her injuries and pain, Chatman said. She was taken to Oregon Health & Science University with life-threatening injuries, according to authorities.
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“This is not the kind of call we go on very often,” Chatman says. “We just really hope she’s able to recover from her injuries.”
Firefighters said the incident caused traffic delays for about 30 minutes as authorities rushed to the scene, according to Fox News.
Portland Fire & Rescue shared footage of the scene, showing the massive building and detailing the incident.
“PF&R Tech Rescue Team called in for a woman entrapped in the garbage chute of condo building at this address, they have freed the patient and are evaluating her now, traffic should return to normal in 15-30min,” authorities tweeted.
They later added: “1926 W Burnside: 1 adult female transported to OHSU with life threatening injuries, witnesses say she got into a garbage chute and fell 16 stories to garbage collection area, firefighters found her in garbage container, all crews have cleared.”
