Man rescued from 250-foot radio tower top in Minnesota

A shocking video shows first responders in Minnesota rescuing a man at the top of a 250-foot radio tower. Sgt. Alex Eckstein, a member of Dakota County Special Operations Team, climbed up to the man in crisis at the top of the tower in Eagan, just south of Minneapolis, aerial footage shows.

Talking to WCCO News, Eckstein described the rescue as “pretty daunting.” “I’ve never experienced anything this physical or mentally draining,” he said.

‘We don’t want to do it again, but we will be prepared for it’
Early on October 10, Eckstein’s routine shift took an unexpected turn after receiving a call about the distressed man. “You’re thinking a lot of things; how are we going to get there, how are we going to get this person down,” Eckstein said.

For about a half-hour, Eckstein spidered up the metal structure. The winds were violent, and he hooked his carabiner and rope to the rungs in case tragedy stuck and he fell.

The spine-chilling video of the incident has gone viral on social media. Take a look:

“You’re doing awesome!” Eckstein yelled to the man while ascending, assuring him that he would be brought down. “It’s unbelievable that this person was able to hold on that long. Nobody likes to be up that high,” the rescuer said.

Both Eckstein and his partner, Chief Sam Seal, climbed to the top, getting a harness on the man before repelling down. “I went to training for it, but I didn’t think I’d ever climb 250 feet to get somebody down,” Seal said.

The man was rescued and brought to a hospital. His rescuers are determined that if something similar were to ever happen again, they will be ready. “We don’t want to do it again, but we will be prepared for it,” Eckstein said.