TIRUPPUR: Braving his life, a fire and rescue services personnel saved one of the four persons who fell unconscious inside a sump at a dyeing unit in Tiruppur on Sunday morning. M Pandeeswaran (28) of Tiruppur South Fire Station had to enter the sump without a mask or any other breathing apparatus as the passage was narrow.
Speaking to TNIE, Pandeeswaran said, “Upon entering the sump, I found the stench unbearable. Quickly I climbed out and informed my colleagues. We were determined to rescue the workers. However, we could not carry oxygen cylinder or breathing apparatus as the passage to the sump was narrow. We devised a plan to avoid the toxic fumes. Fire service men -- Thodisekar, Karthik and A Santhosh Kumar -- covered my nose and mouth with wet cloth. They wrapped a second layer of cloth around my face. A large tube was tied around my waist through a rope. As I entered the sump, my colleagues held the rope tied to me. I took just a few steps inside the sump, and found three workers -- Vadivelu, Dinesh Pandian and Rajendran -- and another -- Ramakrishnan -- near the ladder struggling to breathe. One after another, I brought each worker out. All the persons were rescued from the sump and taken to Tiruppur Government Hospital.”
District Fire Officer Kangeya Boopathi said, “Every second matters in such a situation. Initially, we did not know what to do as the manhole was too narrow and only one person could enter the passage. We sprayed water inside the sump, to dilute the effectiveness of the chemicals or effluent. And then we had to make a quick decision. Pandeeswaran took a big risk. Two persons were rescued alive, and two others were taken out dead.”
Two persons -- Vadivelu (28), Dinesh Pandian (32) -- were taken out dead by Pandeeswaran. Rajendran (55) who was rescued died later on Sunday midnight. Ramakrishnan who was standing near the ladder struggling survived.