VIDEO: Man rescued from sewer system lift station in Jenks

A Jenks Public Works employee slipped and fell while descending a ladder into a lift station near 111th and Elwood early Thursday, and found himself trapped 34 feet below ground and unable to climb back up the ladder.

Jenks called in Tulsa Fire Department Rescue units to assist in lifting the 20-year-old man back to the surface.

Gary Head, a supervisor with Jenks Public Works, told KRMG at the scene three-man crews climb down the lift stations 365 days a year to ensure they're operating properly.

Two men stay on top while one man climbs down.

Thursday, the man's boots and gloves were wet, and he slipped about 10-12 feet from the bottom.

He twisted his ankle badly, but Head later called KRMG to say the worker had been released from the hospital and would return to work by Monday at the latest.

He said the man had only been on the job about three months.

They used a piece of equipment used to raise and lower machinery in and out of the lift station to bring the worker to the surface.

Head added that in 30 years, this was the first such incident he had ever seen.