El Paso Water Utilities Worker Rescued From Deep Trench

A man working on a trench in the Upper Valley has been rescued after being trapped in the trench for more than an hour-and-a-half.

At about 12:15 p.m., a backhoe was lowering a metal safety box into the trench near Artcraft when the box shifted briefly pinned the man against the dirt wall inside the trench that is more than 20 feet deep.

He was able to free himself from the box but complained of chest pains and breathing problems.

The man, who has not been identified, lost consciousness for a short while. It took emergency personnel a while to get him out of the trench because the man must be stabilized first.

He was taken out of the trench before 2 p.m.