Overview
- A tree trimmer suffered a medical emergency about 75 feet up a palm on the 2900 block of Sunburst Drive in San Jose and became incapacitated.
- Ground crews could not reach him with ladders due to the tree’s height and its distance from the street.
- Cal Fire deployed a helicopter that lowered a rescuer, who secured the worker and hoisted him down in an operation that took about 60 to 90 minutes.
- The San Jose Fire Department released video showing the worker hanging upside down before the lift, and authorities said he was hospitalized in serious condition.
- Assistant Fire Chief James Dobson said this was their first aerial “pick-off” for this type of tree, a rare tactic used only when ground access will not work.