A tractor operator was seriously injured after falling into a deep trench at the Columbia landfill Monday afternoon.
The Columbia Fire Department says crews responded just after 4 p.m. to the landfill on Peabody Road, where a tractor pulling a hydroseeder had slid into a 24-foot-deep trench.
The driver was ejected from the tractor and landed about 16 feet below.
Firefighters stabilized the area, used specialized trench rescue equipment to reach the victim, and safely brought the driver out before transporting them to a local hospital by ambulance.