Far from the realms of Yorkshire, in Clifton, New Jersey, a roofer risked his own life to save colleague, Martin Davis, who fell forty feet into a tank of nitric acid while working on the roof of a manufacturing plant.
After being waist-high in the dangerous chemical Martin’s life was saved by the actions of his quick-thinking colleague Rob Nuckols, who jumped into the tank after him and pulled him out with the help of three other colleagues. Rescue workers then cut Martin out of his clothes and doused him in water to limit the burns to his body before airlifting him to hospital.
He was said to be incoherent and in shock after sustaining a broken rib, a punctured lung and burns on his legs and side in the fall. Despite his injuries his brother John Davis remained defiant saying: “He will fight right through this”.
He continued: “They had him on breathing apparatus and his condition is not so good. But he’s a young guy. He’ll pull through.”
Co-worker, and hero of the day, Rob Nuckols suffered burns on his legs and abdomen in the incident but was later released from hospital. He declined to comment after the incident but told fire fighters; “I had to get him out of there”.