10-Year-Old Mimics Santa, Stuck In Chimney For Hours
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IRVING (CBSDFW.COM) - Trapped in a chimney for several hours, a 10-year-old boy is recovering Wednesday night after firefighters rescued him from his Irving home.
Jayden Wallingsford is lucky to be alive.
"Me and my friend, we were chillaxing on the roof. We got on the chimney just chillaxing and my phone fell into the chimney," said Wallingsford.
At that moment, Wallingsford said he thought it would be a good idea to slide down the chimney like Santa Clause to grab his phone. The 10-year-old said he was worried his parents would be mad at him for losing his phone and was hoping to resolve the situation.
"If I went in there, that I could climb back out and then everything would be normal. But I just got stuck at the bottom," said Wallingsford.
About 15 feet from the top of the chimney, Wallingsford remained in a soot-smothered chimney for nearly three hours. His friend, Kevin Faber, 12, broke the glass door in the backyard that was locked in order to attempt to rescue Wallingsford.
"I mainly worried he couldn't get out," said Faber.
Struggling to free Wallingsford, Faber then ran to his grandmother's house where she called 911.
Irving firefighters managed to scale the roof and pull Wallingsford to safety without knocking down the chimney or causing harm to the home. Wallingsford was sent to the hospital to have his lungs checked, but walked away with just a few scratches.
"For the time being, I'm thankful my son is alive," said James Wallingsford, the father of the boy.
James Wallingsford said his son is grounded, especially from the roof.
The 10-year-old said he has learned his lesson and will not be "chillaxing" on any chimneys in the future. "Never do that again. I was worried and I'm thinking right now that I should do that again," said Wallingsford.
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