Worker rescued from 100-foot tower in Berwick

Firefighters rescued a technician Wednesday from a 100-foot tall radio tower in Berwick after the worker was overcome by heat exhaustion and couldn’t descend the ladder on his own, first responders said.
At 3:20 p.m. Wednesday, the Berwick Fire Department responded to a report of a person trapped on top of a tower at the Jesse Fontenot Boat Landing, Berwick Fire Chief Allen Rink said. Berwick called Franklin Fire Department personnel to help rescue the worker at the tower in Berwick with Franklin’s 107-foot ladder. Franklin firefighters arrived on scene at 4:02 p.m.
Franklin Fire Chief Chuck Bourgeois said the department was asked to assist the Berwick Fire Department around 3:30 p.m.
A-Tech Systems of Laurel, Maryland, was performing maintenance on the radio tower site when service technician Gary Leger, 39, of Patterson, was overcome by the high temperatures and experienced heat exhaustion.
Unable to descend the 100-foot tower, he called 911 for help.
The closest ladder truck in east St. Mary Parish area was about 20-feet shy of reaching Leger, Rink said. As soon as Rink realized the ladders available wouldn’t reach, he called the Franklin Fire Department to assist with their 107-foot ladder truck, the tallest one in the parish. The ladder was just tall enough to reach Leger, and firefighters were able to safely get to Leger, Rink said.
Franklin EMT firefighter Adam Fangue climbed the ladder and placed Leger at the tip of the ladder and then lowered him to the ground. Eleven Berwick firefighters and four Franklin firefighters responded to the scene.
Acadian Ambulance assist-ed Leger and transported him to Teche Regional Medical Center for treatment. Leger was treated for minor injuries and released from the hospital Wednesday, Teche Regional Spokeswoman Sabrina Williams said.
The St. Mary Parish Sheriff’s Office and Patterson and Morgan City fire departments also assisted in the rescue operation.
The Banner-Tribune contributed to this report.