11:04 AM EST on Thursday, February 24, 2005

6NEWS staff

6NEWS

A Charlotte firefigher lowers the worker to the ground.

A Charlotte firefighter, dangling from a rope on a crane, rescued a construction worker at the site of the future Bobcats arena uptown Wednesday.

While firefighters say it was all in a days work, others call it a daring rescue they will not forget any time soon.

The glass shattered where the worker slammed into the building after his lift gave way.

“The lift (the worker) was operating became unstable and fell up against the building,” said Billy Mitchell of the Charlotte Fire Department.

The lift tipped on its side with its wheel up in the air. The glass shattered where the worker slammed into the building. The basket the worker was in was dangling.

“I finally realized he was still inside of the cage,” Mitchell said. “I thought he might have been thrown inside the building.”

Spectators on the ground at 300 E. Trade Street watched, wondering what would happen next.

The worker was banged and bruised from the impact bounced the man between the cage's metal rails.

“He was in pain, but he was in good spirits,” Mitchell said.

Crews set out to secure the lift, making sure it didn't slip any further.

“He had a rib injury,” Mitchell said. “His only concern was that his harness had a strap that went across his rib.”

Rescuers tried to lift the man out with a basket, but it didn’t work.

“They finally just put a bunch of straps around him and one of the firemen just held onto the guy,” said witness David Quattlebaum.

Nearly an hour later a crane lowered the victim to safety.

“It's not every day you see a crane lifting firemen up into the air to lift people to safety,” Mitchell said. “It’s the kind of something you see on television.”

The name of the worker has not been released. But he was transported to Carolinas Medical Center with non life-threatening injuries.

Hunt Construction Group declined to comment about the accident.