SAN ANTONIO – The rescue itself, in which San Antonio firefighters climbed a ladder and descended into the back of a garbage truck to rescue a trapped woman, was dramatic enough.
However, a surveillance camera video shows that the truck driver’s panic was palpable when he realized he was transporting more than just garbage.
The scene unfolded around 3 a.m. Wednesday on a narrow street off Vance Jackson Road near Loop 410.
The San Antonio Fire Department arrived on scene in response to a call for help regarding the trapped woman.
According to authorities, the woman appears to have been sleeping in a dumpster somewhere in the area and was accidentally taken along with the trash.
As the truck began to compact the trash, the woman began screaming, firefighters said.
Fortunately, the truck driver heard her screams and stopped the truck.
“I looked at my phone and heard a woman screaming, ‘Help, help!'” said Saher Maswadr, who saw the drama hours later on his surveillance camera.
The driver suddenly stopped his truck in a parking lot near Maswadr’s Palata Auto shop.
On the video from his surveillance camera, you can clearly hear the woman screaming for help from the back of the truck.
The video also shows the driver realizing what is happening, responding to the woman and presumably calling 911.
Shortly afterwards, firefighters arrived and began rescue operations.
Using ladders, firefighters climbed onto the back of the garbage truck and helped the woman to safety. At the scene, they said she had not suffered serious injuries and declined medical treatment.
Although it was a close call for her, Maswadr said, the woman was not the first person he had seen rummaging through nearby dumpsters.
“They jump in the dumpster. They jump in the side. They try to grab something to eat or maybe look for recyclables,” he said.
A few steps from the back of his store, an employee pointed to what looked like several homeless encampments.
Maswadr said he regularly does what he can to help those in need.
However, he said knowing that someone is sleeping in a dumpster is particularly disturbing and a clear sign that more help needs to be provided.
“Having this problem,” Maswadr said, “breaks my heart.”
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