KEY POINTS:
A workman spent 40 agonising minutes trapped 10m high inside a crane after an industrial accident in Parnell yesterday.
The man, whose feet were crushed by a piece of falling metal, screamed in agony as he awaited rescuers who had to secure the site before working out how to free him.
Colleagues rushed to the man's aid, climbed into the crane shaft and stood underneath him to support his weight for 40 minutes.
A second man was also injured in the accident, which is being investigated by the Department of Labour.
Eyewitness Jeremiah Ross said he heard a crashing of metal followed by the man's screams.
"It sounded like a whole shed full of wine bottles falling over. There was lots of metal falling. It was pretty scary.
"He was screaming, 'Hurry up and get it out or I'm going to slip'."
Christopher Hay, director of Christopher Hay Construction, said his company was building a home on the site in Crescent Rd.
The crane was one of two on site. The collapsed crane, which belongs to Dominion Constructors, was being installed by four men when something went wrong, he said.
Senior Station Officer Chris Scott of the Auckland Fire Service said the man had freed his feet by the time emergency services arrived, but he could not get down because of his injuries.
Firefighters used an extension ladder to take medics to the man. They then hauled him out on to the platform.
Both men were taken by St John Ambulance staff to Auckland City Hospital with moderate injuries.
Dominion Constructors and New Zealand Crane Hire, which owns the other crane, declined to comment.
