VIDEO: City of Saskatoon issues warning after teen rescued from storm sewer drain

After a teenager got trapped against the grate of a storm sewer on Friday evening, requiring a rescue by firefighters and police, the City of Saskatoon is warning the public to stay away from those areas.

According to the city, a group of four teenage boys went into a Saskatoon storm water system in the Silverwood neighbourhood through an outfall, a pipe where the water empties out. But once rain started coming down that evening, those storm sewers quickly began to fill up.

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Three of the boys escaped, but the fourth was pushed in a different direction by the water. Instead of going towards the open outfall, he was carried towards a different outfall which was enclosed by a grate, and the rushing water trapped him against the bars.

Emergency crews were called to the drainage pipe in Silverwood Dog Park in the 2700 block of Kinnear Avenue at around 8 p.m.

When the Saskatoon police arrived, one of the first officers on the scene helped keep the boy’s head above water.

“With the Fire Department on their way, the officer crawled into the storm drain and reached through the bars to keep the young man’s head above water,” the police force said in a statement.

“The officer remained in place as members from (the Saskatoon Fire Department) arrived and a rescue could be coordinated.”

Firefighters cut the grating of the large drainage pipe and used a system of ropes to lift the teenager out. The entire rescue took nearly two hours.

The teenager received medical attention and was taken to the hospital by paramedics, but “fortunately, no further harm came to the trapped male,” the city said.

An alert had already been posted in the city’s website regarding Silverwood Dog Park because of the impacts of the Biosolids Pipeline Corridor Project. Construction for the project includes drilling and open-cut trenching within the park.

Firefighters cut the grating of the large drainage pipe and used a system of ropes to lift the teenager out. The entire rescue took nearly two hours. (Mia Holowaychuk/650 CKOM)

In the aftermath of Friday’s emergency rescue, the City of Saskatoon is stressing to the public that “under no circumstances should anyone other than authorized personnel access city infrastructure.”

That includes bridges, electrical substations, and sewers, the city said.

“These areas are extremely dangerous and should never be explored,” the city added.

While outfalls are regularly inspected, people who see one that looks dangerous or has been compromised were asked to call the city’s customer care centre.

–with files from 650 CKOM’s Mia Holowaychuk