An hours-long rescue culminating in a team of 70 people—first responders from around the area and local farmers looking to help—worked to free a farmer who got caught inside a grain bin.

NOKOMIS, Ill. (WAND) - An hours-long rescue culminating in a team of 70 people—first responders from around the area and local farmers looking to help—worked to free a farmer who got caught inside a grain bin. By the time he got out of the grain bin, first responders said he had been in there for five hours. 

At 6 p.m. Tuesday, the Nokomis Area Fire Protection District got word that a person was trapped in a grain bin at Illinois Route 16 and Ohlman Road. Nokomis Area Fire Protection Chief, Michael Smalley, said by the time they were contacted by the group trying to rescue the farmer, they had already been working at it for two hours.

The farmer's son, who had found him in the grain bin, had placed plastic around the farmer to prevent him from falling further into the corn. Nokomis Area Fire Protection Captain Trevor Braye was the first responder to enter the grain bin; he said the son's decision to surround the farmer in plastic saved his life.

"I have no qualm, no issues saying that—I'll say that to anybody: he absolutely saved his dad on that one," Braye said. 

Once Braye evaluated the situation inside the bin, they lowered a Res-Q-Tube inside to start auguring corn out of a cavity around the farmer.

However, the slope of the corn inside the bin was not conducive to auguring it out, so the team had to make relief cuts in the grain bin to filter the corn out.

By that time, nearly 30 farmers came over to help with the situation, bringing shovels to start shoveling the corn out of the grain bin. 

"Thank the good Lord above we had multiple farmers show up with more shovels than hands, and started doing the hard work," Braye said.

After about an hour and a half of moving grain through relief cuts in the grain bin, the victim was rescued and transferred to the Nokomis Witt Area Ambulance Service. Air Methods transported him. 

Smalley started a mutual air response immediately following notification of the incident, including Illinois Department of Natural Resources officers, Nokomis Police Department, Witt Fire Department, Pana Fire Department, Fillmore Fire Protection District, Farmersville-Waggoner Fire Protection District, Nokomis-Witt Area Fire Protection District, Air Methods Helicopter and Montgomery County EMA. Springfield Fire Department’s Technical Rescue Team was also called to help. 

The Nokomis Area Fire Protection District urges farmers to avoid going into grain bins. If it is unavoidable, they suggest always having a spotter, tying yourself to a secure anchor point, and avoiding using your feet or hands. 

If you are caught in corn or beans, immediately call emergency services.

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