Essex firefighters rescue three men from tumble dryer

Three men were rescued by fire crews from the industrial-sized tumble dryer

Three men had to be rescued by firefighters after getting stuck in a tumble dryer.

Essex County Fire and Rescue Service were called to a derelict laundry in Bower Hill, Epping, on Friday after the men, thought to be in their late teens, crawled into an industrial-sized dryer.

Two were in the dryer when the third's "ankles became trapped in the door" as he crawled in, the service said.

The men were left in the care of the ambulance service.

'Arduous conditions'

Essex Police, the Helicopter Medical Emergency Service (HEMS) and the East of England Ambulance Service's Hazardous Area Response Team (HART) also attended the incident, which happened at about 18:35 GMT.

Fire service watch manager Glenn Jackson said crews had to help the third man into the tumble dryer before being able to remove the door and release all three.

"We used a range of equipment to free the casualty's ankles and allow him to crawl into the tumble dryer," he said.

"The HEMS team gave him pain relief and we then managed to move the door, again using a range of equipment, so the men could crawl out."

Mr Jackson said crews "worked really hard in arduous conditions".

"It was a difficult site to access and we had to carry a lot of heavy equipment a large distance from the appliances to the tumble dryer and then use our expertise to free the men safely."