When we hear the word "firefighters," we tend to visualize them rescuing individuals from fires or individuals from precarious situations. However, in Kerala's Kasaragod district, a team of Fire and Rescue personnel intervened to assist doctors with a delicate medical issue.

During the evening of March 25, physicians at the district hospital in Kanhangad encountered an unexpected crisis. A 46-year-old man checked into the hospital with acute swelling in his private areas. The swelling had become so severe that it was preventing him from urinating.

The reason? A stuck iron washer around his genitals for three days. No way to remove it, so the doctors asked the Fire and Rescue service for assistance at approximately 10 p.m.

A two-hour rescue operation

P V Pavithran, Station Officer of Kanhangad Fire and Rescue station, described how the rescuers handled the delicate situation. 

“It was a challenging, two-hour-long operation. We used a ring cutter, a tool commonly employed to remove rings stuck on fingers, to carefully cut the washer,” he told PTI.

The individual had also been sedated by the physicians to avoid causing him any pain during the time the rescue team operated.

How did the washer get stuck?

When questioned on how the washer came to be around his genitals, the man explained that somebody had put it on him while he was drunk. Pavithran explained the shocking state: 

“The iron washer was tightly placed around the private area, making it impossible for him to urinate.”

A five-person Fire and Rescue unit safely cut through the washer without inflicting additional injury. Their quick response and accuracy allowed the man to escape a possible life-threatening experience.

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