SAN ANTONIO – The rescue itself, which involved San Antonio firefighters scaling a ladder and descending into the back of a garbage truck to retrieve a trapped woman, was dramatic enough.
However, video captured by a surveillance camera shows the truck driver’s panic was palpable as he first realized he was hauling more than trash.
The scene unfolded around 3 a.m. Wednesday on a narrow street off Vance Jackson Road near Loop 410.
San Antonio firefighters responded to the area for a call for help regarding the trapped woman.
Officials say it appears she had been sleeping in a garbage dumpster somewhere in the area and was inadvertently picked up along with the trash.
As the truck began compacting the trash, the woman began to scream, firefighters said.
Fortunately, the truck driver somehow heard her cries and stopped the truck.
“I looked at my phone and heard a lady screaming, ‘Help, help!’,” said Saher Maswadr, who saw the drama hours later, by way of his surveillance camera.
The driver brought his truck to a sudden stop in a parking lot near Maswadr’s Palata Auto business.
In the video captured by his surveillance camera, the woman can be heard clearly crying for help from the back of the truck.
The video also shows the driver realizing what is happening, answering back to the woman, and making a phone call, presumably to 911.
Soon after, fire crews arrived and began the rescue effort.
Using ladders, firefighters climbed into the back of the garbage truck and helped the woman out to safety. At the scene, they said she did not suffer any major injuries and refused medical treatment.
While it was a close call for her, Maswadr said the woman was not the first person he had seen diving into nearby dumpsters.
“They jump into the dumpster. They jump into the side. They’re trying to get some food or looking for, maybe, recycling,” he said.
Steps away from the back side of his business, an employee pointed out what appeared to be several homeless encampments.
Maswadr said he regularly does what he can to help the needy.
However, he said knowing that someone was sleeping in a dumpster is especially disturbing and a clear sign that more help should be made available.
“Having this issue,” Maswadr said, “it breaks my heart.”