COUNCIL officials have confirmed that a binman was injured after falling through a manhole in Bournemouth on Monday.
The air ambulance landed in the town centre after the casualty was hurt in Exeter Crescent close to the BH2 leisure complex during the morning.
The man suffered leg and back injuries in the fall. He was taken to Poole Hospital by road ambulance.
He had been clearing large household waste bins when he plummeted through the manhole.
Stuart Best, Bournemouth council's street services manager, said: “We can confirm that one of our employees was injured in Exeter Crescent while carrying out a household waste collection.
"The incident occurred on private land and has been reported to the Health & Safety Executive.
"We place high value on employee safety and will do all we can to support this member of staff and carry out a full investigation to avoid any likelihood of a repeat incident.’’
Firefighters based at Westbourne, Springbourne and Redhill, as well as a technical rescue team from Poole, were called to the incident shortly after 10.35am.
The ambulance service sent an operations officer, two ambulances and a rapid response vehicle.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here