Queens Gravedigger Rescued From Burial Plot Recovering
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – New York City firefighters and emergency personnel responded en masse to a cemetery in Queens where a veteran gravedigger needed rescuing from the bottom of a burial plot Friday.
As CBS 2's Steve Langford reported, Ramon Veras was in bad shape but grateful to be alive Saturday after he took a frightening 8-foot tumble into the narrow tomb he was working on.
"Maybe he just had a bad day and lost sight of what he was doing and tripped and fell in," FDNY firefighter Jim Reichman said.
Reichman was part of the rescue effort at St. John Cemetery.
"He wasn't buried, he was just about 8, 8 and ½ feet down in an 8-by-3-foot hole, very tight quarters," he said.
Aside from the delicate nature of pulling the injured man, semiconscious, from the bottom of the grave site, the danger of the earth falling on him was an urgent concern.
"There's definitely a chance of collapse anytime you put yourself in one of those environments, trench environments, it could cave in on you," Reichman said.
The rescue took about 45 minutes.
Veras reported injuries to his shoulder and foot as well as chest pain but told CBS 2 he is feeling better.
St. John Cemetery said they had no comment, while Catholic Cemeteries, which owns and operates the burial grounds, expressed concern for the gravedigger, saying in part, "we are keeping him and his family in our prayers."
From his hospital bed, Veras expressed special gratitude to the FDNY for saving him.
"Oh thank you, the firemen," he said.
Veras, who is in this 60s and has worked at the cemetery for nearly 25 years, says it is too early to know if he'll be able to return to work.
He is currently at Elmhurst Hospital in stable condition.
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