AHMEDABAD: An early-morning rescue in Gujarat’s Surat saw firemen save a 57-year-old man who slipped from the 10th floor of a high-rise and remained suspended between the 8th and 10th floors for nearly an hour, turning a routine winter morning into a race against death.

The incident occurred when a middle-aged man fell from the 10th floor of a residential tower in the Jahangirabad area and survived only because his body became wedged between the window grille and railing of the 8th floor, leaving him dangling helplessly in mid-air.

The man, identified as Nitinbhai Adia, a resident of the Rander zone, was reportedly sleeping near the window of his 10th-floor flat when the accident occurred. In a split second, he slipped and plunged downward, but his fall was arrested when his leg became firmly trapped in the iron grille of the 8th floor.

Eyewitnesses described the scene, with Nitinbhai hanging several floors above the ground, crying for help while struggling to keep himself steady. “One wrong move and he could have slipped,” a local resident said, recalling the panic that gripped the building.

The fire control room swung into action as soon as the emergency call was received. Given the gravity of the situation, teams from three fire stations, Jahangirpura, Palanpur and Adajan, rushed to the spot.

On arrival, the fire brigade launched a carefully planned, double-layer rescue operation. As a precautionary measure, personnel spread a safety net on the ground floor to prevent a fatal outcome in case of a fall. At the same time, other firemen accessed both the 10th and 8th floors to reach the trapped man from above and below.

“We treated it as a high-risk rescue,” a fire officer said, explaining the strategy. “First, we secured the victim with ropes and a safety belt from the 10th floor so that his body weight was supported. Only after that did we attempt to free his trapped leg.”