BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KBAK/FOX58) -- Firefighters faced a challenging and ultimately tragic rescue Thursday evening after receiving a report of a man trapped in a palm tree on Plaza Street.
Kern County Fire responded to the call, finding the victim pinned approximately 30 feet up a tall palm tree.
The man had been unresponsive for about 30 minutes before first responders arrived, according to Johnathan Drucker, Spokesperson for the Kern County Fire Department.
"He was a tree trimmer who was climbing the tree to trim it, and the fronds became loose and they actually pinned him up in the tree,"
Drucker said the man was wearing professional gear, such as specific shoes to climb as well as a safety harness.
"The safety harness actually came into play because we used his safety harness to lower him down once we were able to cut him free.," Drucker said.
Rescuers faced significant challenges. A 100-foot ladder, typically used in such situations, fell short of reaching the height of the tree.
"We tucked it in to a driveway as far as we could go and we got up against a house, and we extended that ladder as far as it would go," added Drucker. "What we were faced with was only the option to climb the tree."
After hours of grueling work, the entire frond skirt was cut loose, exposing the victim.
However when the rescuer reached him, it was too late, he had already died.
The man was then secured in the rope system and lowered to the ground.
This situation is typically not something firefighters deal with often, and the sun going down made the job more difficult.
Drucker says dealing with different situations is something they are trained to do-but it's not always easy since harm can happen to anyone.
"Our life is exposure and so that is the nature of the job, right? And that is what we signed up to do, so we've all had that understanding and we're aware that what we do is dangerous, but we made that pact to take on that job and risk in order to do good."
Luckily no firefighters were hurt.
The coroner's office will release the name of the person and the cause of death.