A man found himself in the wrong place at the wrong time on Thursday when he decided to cross a waterfall between Lewiston and Auburn, Maine.
When he first started to cross Great Falls, the water was low — however, a dam upriver was opened, and the water level rose significantly in a short period of time, trapping him on the rocks.
Once first responders were notified, they contacted officials to see if the dam could be shut to aid in their rescue, but operators told them that it would take at least an hour for that to have any effect on the level of the water.
According to Russ Dillingham, who recorded the incident, Great Falls is known to be dangerous and the area is fenced off.
Despite the danger, people still find ways onto the rocks, as the stranded daredevil seemed to have done.
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Auburn Fire and Rescue sent out crews and boats to assist the man. A post on a local police Facebook page stated that the rescue was a “very serious major prolonged water rescue operation.”
“The person stuck on the waterfall can only be seen by fire rescue personnel looking for him with binoculars,” a live update read.
“The rescue boat has left the waterfall leaving a fire rescue team in wet suits on the rocks while they go get more crews to bring back to the water fall with police.”
Thankfully, the man was safely brought aboard a rescue boat. It took multiple crews and agencies to ensure that he was escorted off the rocks and wasn’t carried away by the Androscoggin River.
Some Facebook commenters wondered if the man was on drugs, and others questioned his general sanity. It’s clear that people know Great Falls is a dangerous area and should be avoided.
“Food for thought for anybody thinking about going out onto the rocks,” Dillinger said at the end of his video.
“Not a good idea.”
