Firefighters rescue three men trapped in giant tumble dryer

Heavy equipment used to remove door

While two made it in successfully, the third encountered difficulties after his ‘ankles became trapped in the door when he tried to crawl in' (Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Three men had to be rescued by firefighters after they became stuck in an industrial-sized tumble dryer.

Essex County Fire and Rescue Service (ECFRS) were called to a derelict laundry site in Bower Hill in Epping around 6.35 where the three men, believed to be in their late teens, had decided to crawl into the dryer.

While two had made it in successfully, the third encountered difficulties after his “ankles became trapped in the door when he tried to crawl in,” the ECFRS said.

The firefighters called for backup from Essex Police, Helicopter Medical Emergency Service (HEMS) and the Ambulance Service's Hazardous Area Response Team (HART).

They used a range of heavy equipment, with the third man initially helped to complete his passage into the dryer, before the door was removed to allow all three out.

The men were given pain relief and left in the care of ambulance officers.

"It was a difficult site to access and we had to carry a lot of heavy equipment a large distance from the appliances to the tumble dryer and then use our expertise to free the men safely," said ECFRS watch manager Glenn Jackson.

"We used a range of equipment to free the casualty's ankles and allow him to crawl into the tumble dryer.

"The HEMS team gave him pain relief and we then managed to move the door, again using a range of equipment, so the men could crawl out."