2 workers critically hurt when scaffolding snaps inside Wheeling water tower

Two workers are in critical condition after their scaffolding broke Friday, sending one of them falling at least 50 feet inside a water tower in northwest suburban Wheeling.

The men were sandblasting and painting inside the tank when a support cable snapped in the scaffolding, Wheeling Fire Department Chief Mike McGreal said in a statement.

One of the workers fell several feet, while the other slammed into the side of the tank, McGreal said. Crews responded to the trapped men about 9 a.m. in the 700 block of Wolf Court.

It took authorities about 15 minutes to reach the top of the tank, enter it and treat the men, McGreal said.

“It was a very involved and technical rescue,” McGreal said. Once the men were reached, crews used ropes to raise and then lower them to safety 100 feet below.

Both men were taken to Condell Medical Center in Libertyville, he said.

A preliminary investigation points to equipment failure as the cause of the accident, McGreal said. Between 30 and 40 crew members assisted in the rescue.