This article is from the source 'bbc' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.
You can find the current article at its original source at https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-50207301
The article has changed 7 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.
Version 5 | Version 6 |
---|---|
Carlisle Dixons chimney: Man stuck on 290ft structure has died | Carlisle Dixons chimney: Man stuck on 290ft structure has died |
(32 minutes later) | |
A man who was stuck upside down at the top of a 290ft former mill chimney for about 15 hours has died. | A man who was stuck upside down at the top of a 290ft former mill chimney for about 15 hours has died. |
Emergency services were called to Dixons Chimney in Carlisle at about 02:20 GMT but an attempt to rescue him with a helicopter was abandoned. | Emergency services were called to Dixons Chimney in Carlisle at about 02:20 GMT but an attempt to rescue him with a helicopter was abandoned. |
A specialist cherry picker from Scotland was drafted in to help and the man, in his 50s and from Carlisle, was brought down at about 16:45 GMT. | |
Cumbria Police confirmed he was pronounced dead at the scene. | |
A spokesman said they knew his identity and specialist officers were assisting his family. | |
He said while the man had responded to rescuers earlier, there had been no contact for "some hours" before a specialist team used the cherry picker to reach him. | |
The rescue effort was described as "highly complex" and included the use of drones to assess the scene. | |
Police said specialist firefighters, who are trained to work at height, lowered the man down from the chimney. | |
Supt Matt Kennerley earlier said attempts to rescue the man using a helicopter had "not been possible due to the precarious position" the man was in and the "potential for back-draft to worsen the situation". | |
Roads around the prominent listed local landmark, which was built in 1836, were closed during the rescue operation. | Roads around the prominent listed local landmark, which was built in 1836, were closed during the rescue operation. |
Volunteers from the Penrith Mountain Rescue Team, Lancashire Fire and Rescue and the coastguard helicopter were also at the scene. | |
An investigation will be launched into how and why the man reached the top of the chimney, police said. |