Trapped man attempts to sever his own arm to survive - Jun 2010
New York (CNN) -- Trapped in the basement by a broken furnace for three days, and the only hope for survival is to cut off your own arm. Metz had been trapped in his basement for two days when he smelled rotting flesh and realized his only hope to stay alive was to amputate his left arm, which was trapped by a furnace. So he made a tourniquet just below his shoulder and sawed through 90 percent of his arm before he passed out.
According to West Hartford Fire Chief Matt Stuart, rescuers ripped apart the furnace using heavy tools and completed the amputation. The arm could not be reattached because of infection. "His arm was dying, and once that happens, you release toxins, and he did mention the smell, so he knew something wasn't right," explained Dr. Scott Ellner.
The doctors said there a nerve probably got in the way of Metz finishing the amputation. He will have to undergo a few more surgeries to make the arm viable for a prosthetic. Dr. David Shapiro was inspired by Metz's actions, saying, "The way that he did it was frightening, admirable, horrifying, brave and just amazing to us."
Metz was trying to repair the furnace when he got trapped. Drinking water leaking from the furnace helped keep him alive.
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Gotta do what ya gotta do I guess. Pretty hardcore though. Wonder how many people in that situation would have just curled up and died instead.