NEW! HIGHLIGHT AND SHARE
Highlight text to share via Facebook and Twitter
Nine News
Daniel Miller told rescue workers it was thoughts of his family that made him determined to survive.
A 45-year-old man was forced to spend several hours keeping his face just above water line after the excavator he was operating rolled into a dam on his property in New South Wales.
Nine News
According to Fairfax Media, Daniel Miller was driving a three-tonne mini excavator on his Charlotte Bay property, when the machine fell into the muddy dam. He found himself trapped under the excavator as his feet started to sink in the mud.
As he kept sinking, he managed to arch his back and keep just his nose above water. His ordeal lasted an incredible five hours before a neighbour heard him calling for help.
There was no way for firefighters to lift up the excavators so rescue workers had to dig under Miller's body which was trapped by the excavator's roll bar and literally slide him out.
Rescue workers used a variety of equipment to get Miller out: Crib Blocks,Tirfor Winch and power hydraulic tools to stabilise then lift the machine off the patient who was then taken to hospital.
Facebook
Facebook
facebook
Rescue workers told Nine News that being trapped against the excavator's roll bar meant Miller was forced to do the equivalent of hundreds of push ups by arching his back to keep his face above the water.
Chief Inspector Neil Stephens told NBN News that Miller was extremely lucky to survive.
"He was trapped such that only just a part of his face was above the water, just his nose and his forehead was above the water," said Chief Inspector Stephens.
Miller is now recovering in hospital where he's been treated for mild hypothermia but, rescue workers agree, it's a miracle he survived his terrifying ordeal.
ALSO ON HUFFPOST AUSTRALIA
