Man survives fall into grain at Chestnut

[JULY 14, 2006]  People everywhere were complaining about the heat and humidity yesterday, but first responders were put to the test to keep a 55-year-old Lake Fork man from smothering in grain. Thirty-eight-year veteran worker John Buckner Sr. was on the job at the Chestnut elevator, north of Mount Pulaski on Route 54, about 11:30 a.m. Thursday when the corn he was standing on gave way and he was sucked down. A nearby co-worker heard him holler for help.

Police departments blocked roads to help expedite the rescue teams to the scene, and an Air Evac helicopter was called in.

Buckner sank quickly and was up to his nose by the time rescue crews from Logan and Macon counties arrived at the scene.

It took a couple of hours of working in the stifling heat, unloading corn, securing him and some luck that there weren't more sinkhole pockets that could have drawn him down farther, but amazingly he was lifted out and able to walk away unhurt.

The elevator is owned by Elkhart Grain Co.

The city of Lincoln Fire Department responded with their tech trailer that contains special equipment for use in close confinement, trench or vertical rescues. Four or five men set up a haul system with ropes from above, and one man went down to assist Buckner, Chief Jim Davis said.

Lincoln firefighters were assisted by Mount Pulaski and Decatur fire departments, with everyone working well together, Davis said. The department has regular trainings in just this type of rescue. The success of the recovery shows that training pays off, he said. "When they get there they know what to do," he said. Every man in the department is familiar with the basics of this type rescue, the appropriate knots and equipment, and some have gone on and done advanced training.

This is the second rescue of this type in two years. The other was at a grain elevator in Lake Fork. There isn't really an average; it runs in spurts, Davis said. There will probably be a lot of safety awareness training at the local elevators, and you might not see an accident for a few years.

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