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Man trapped under car when jacks fail, Florida cops say. Watch officers come to rescue

Minutes after a man became dangerously trapped under a car in Florida, officers jumped into action to save his life, body camera footage shows.

A man in his 70s was changing the transmission cable on a car in Cape Coral on Oct. 30 when disaster struck, his family told WBBH.

As the man removed the part, the jacks holding his car above him failed, and the vehicle came crashing down on top of him, the outlet reported.

His family called police and minutes later two officers with the Cape Coral Police Department arrived, according to a Nov. 1 Facebook post.

The next few moments were captured on the officers’ body camera footage and shared on Facebook.

The officers run up to the red sedan, the video shows, then one stands at the front of the car and the other at the front right wheel well.

The man was working on his car when the jacks failed and the car crashed down on top of him, police video shows.
The man was working on his car when the jacks failed and the car crashed down on top of him, police video shows. Screengrab from Cape Coral Police Department body camera footage

Both officers grab the car and lift, picking up the car enough for the man’s family member to pull him out from the crushing weight.

The man’s family member, identified as his son-in-law Carlos Romero by WBBH, told the officers the man had a pulse and was breathing.

Police said the man was taken to a hospital with serious injuries but has since been able to return home.

“If that had continued to weigh on him like that, he probably would’ve lost his life,” Cape Coral Police Department public information officer Mercedes Phillips told WBBH. “It’s like the Hulk lifting the car off of somebody. It’s pretty cool and we’re really proud of (them).”

Cape Coral is about 135 miles south of Tampa.

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This story was originally published November 2, 2023 at 1:57 PM with the headline "Man trapped under car when jacks fail, Florida cops say. Watch officers come to rescue."

Irene Wright
McClatchy DC
Irene Wright is a McClatchy Real-Time reporter. She earned a B.A. in ecology and an M.A. in health and medical journalism from the University of Georgia and is now based in Atlanta. Irene previously worked as a business reporter at The Dallas Morning News.
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