Man ‘lucky to be found alive’ after being rescued from trash dumped at solid waste plant

MORAINE — A man was found alive in a load of trash dropped off at the Montgomery County Solid Waste facility in Moraine this morning, police and a county spokesperson said.

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Moraine police Sgt. Mike Keegan said officers responded to the facility on Sandridge Drive around 7 a.m. after they received a report from workers at the building saying they found a man in a load of trash.

“A Rumpke truck dumped a load of trash and a gentleman came out with it,” a 911 caller told emergency dispatchers.  “He’s waving his hands, he’s kind of trapped in the trash.”

Keegan said the load of trash the man was found in was dropped off at the facility from a dump truck that came from the Springfield area.

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Police said a front loader at the facility was working to move the dumped trash when the discovery was made.

“Luckily during that scoop, he did not hit the individual and actually at that point he saw a hand come up out of the trash,” Keegan said.

The man made some allegations that he was assaulted in Springfield, Keegan said.  Police are working to determine if the man’s injuries were from the reported assault or if he was injured some other way, the sergeant added.

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County spokeswoman Brianna Wooten said workers at the facility immediately called for medical help when they discovered the 28-year-old man.

“I think it’s fair to say the gentleman was lucky to be found alive,” Wooten said.

In a news release, Rumpke said an investigation is underway to determine why and how the man ended up in the trash truck.

“We are very thankful to the first responders that were on scene immediately and acted so swiftly,” said Rumpke area safety manager Randy Broadright. “Rumpke is fully committed to working with local authorities on the investigation.”

Keegan said the dump truck had collected trash from commercial dumpsters in the Springfield area and had made its last pickup around 6:20 a.m. before coming to the Moraine facility.

Police said the injuries to the man were not believed to be life-threatening.