Alaska Boy Scout rescued after being pinned by 3,000-pound boulder
JUNEAU, Alaska -- Firefighters in Alaska rescued a Boy Scout after a 3,000-pound boulder tumbled onto him at a Juneau camp, pinning his legs.
The Juneau Empire reported Capital City Fire/Rescue freed the boy Monday after an intensive rescue that took about two hours. The Ketchikan teen's name and exact age haven't been released.
The fire agency responded to Eagle Beach after camp leaders reported the emergency. The lead firefighter on the scene, Noah Jenkins, says the boy was on the beach when the rock, which Jenkins estimated was "about the size of a desk," loosened and fell on top of him.
Boy Scout leaders were able to free one of the boy's legs. Firefighters lifted the boulder with inflatable air bags and chunks of wood to free his other leg, but Jenkins said shifting sand made it a "precarious situation."
"He was in quite a bit of pain, especially with any movement, but he seemed like a pretty tough little kid," Jenkins told the newspaper. "His dad was there, and other troop leaders, and they kind of held him in place and comforted him."
The boy was flown by helicopter to Bartlett Regional Hospital. On Wednesday, hospital spokesman Jim Strader said he was unable to provide any information.