High Anxiety for Dangling Window Washers

ANAHEIM -- It was a case of high anxiety for three window washers who were left dangling hundreds of feet above the ground when their scaffolding gave way. Anaheim police Chief John Welter and three of his officers rescued two of three window washers and firefighters plucked the third worker to safety. The emergency at the 11-story Bank of America office building in the 300 block of South Harbor Boulevard was reported about 6:30 a.m., said Anaheim Fire Marshal Jeff Lutz. The building is across the street from police headquarters. The scaffolding "broke loose from an anchor point," leaving the platform tipped in a vertical position, suspended by only one anchor point, Lutz said. The workers were wearing safety harnesses, and two of them "were in the process of climbing up" a rope in an effort to reach safety, he said. Welter and another officer saw the emergency, according to Lutz. They and two other officers went across the street and made their way to the roof of the building. The officers "yanked" on a rope to bring two workers who were one floor below them to safety, said Lutz. The third man was farther down the building and was rescued by firefighters using the department's urban rescue truck. He was "about 125 feet up, which is pretty much at the capacity" of the fire truck to reach the man. The worker rescued by firefighters was uninjured but was taken to the hospital as a precaution. Another worker was treated for "moderate head lacerations" and the third complained of minor neck and back pain. They, too, were taken to the hospital. The Occupational Safety and Health Administration will investigate the accident.