Cedar City firefighters rescue 2 tree trimming workers after boom lift malfunctions

Written by Jeff Richards
May 21, 2024

CEDAR CITY — Cedar City firefighters successfully rescued two men who became stuck on a piece of equipment while trimming a tree  Tuesday morning.

Cedar City Fire Department firefighter Chad Barnes, left, talks to tree trimming workers after their telescopic boom lift platform was able to be successfully lowered to the ground, Cedar City, Utah, May 21, 2024 | Photo by Jeff Richards, St. George News / Cedar City News

The incident, which was reported shortly after 10:30 a.m., took place in the backyard of a residence on the south side of 200 South, in the area of 600 East.

The two private landscaping workers were on the platform of a telescopic boom lift when the equipment somehow malfunctioned, leaving them stranded approximately 12 feet in the air. 

Responding to the call were Cedar City Fire Capt. Travis Fails and firefighter Chad Barnes. 

After communicating with the two men aboard the equipment, the firefighters made efforts to get the hydraulic lift working so it could be lowered.

After about 15-20 minutes of troubleshooting, a solution was found and the platform was safely lowered to the ground without further incident at approximately 11:15 a.m.

No injuries were reported.

Although the source of the problem wasn’t specifically identified at the scene, the two workers said they would have the equipment’s owner make sure everything was working properly before they began using it again.

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Copyright St. George News, SaintGeorgeUtah.com LLC, 2024, all rights reserved.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Jeff Richards, a native of Salt Lake City with family roots in Panguitch, lived in Moab for 20 years before joining St. George News in 2017. Jeff is a longtime journalist and secondary school teacher. He and his wife Penny are the parents of five daughters. They also have three young grandsons and one granddaughter. Jeff and his family enjoy swimming, camping, sightseeing, reading, and taking pictures.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @stgnews@moabjeff@stgnewssports

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