- Grace Knox, 12, has been pulled to safety after she fell into an open sewer
- She was walking to school when she fell 12 feet into the sewer
- Her phone landed on the pavement and she was trapped for an hour
- She screamed for help until a passerby heard her cries
A nine-year-old girl from western New York girl who broke her leg and ankle after falling through an open manhole into the sewer 12 feet below yelled for help for an hour before a passer-by heard her.
Grace Knox, was walking to school in Buffalo, around 7:30 on Tuesday morning, when she plummeted into the sewer below.
Her phone stayed on the pavement up top and so she was stuck at the bottom without any way of calling for help apart from screaming.
Grace Knox, was walking to school on Tuesday morning, when she fell 12 feet into the sewer
It took more than an hour before anyone heard her screams and summoned rescue services
Capt. Daniel O’Leary of the Buffalo Fire Department tells WKBW-TV the girl was trapped in a foot of rushing water after falling through the open hole.
After nearly an hour of terrified screams, a passer by finally heard her cries for help.
Buffalo Fire crews lowered a ladder into the sewer and she was able to climb out.
It’s unknown why the hole was not covered. A spokesman for the city says crews weren’t doing sewer work in the area.
The youngster was unable to call for help using a phone because that had stayed up top
Grace was stuck in the sewer as rushing water flowed past her for more than an hour
Officials found the cover a short distance from the scene, but can’t explain how it got there.
Grace is currently recovering at Women and Children’s Hospital.
Her family said that she will require surgery to her ankle which will be performed on Wednesday.