OAKLAND (KRON) — A man taking soil samples after Saturday morning’s Oakland Hills mudslide got stuck in the mud about 80 feet down a slope on Tuesday afternoon, firefighters said Wednesday.
It happened at around 2:35 p.m. Fire crews responded to an area near the 4100 block of Oak Hill Road on report of a man stuck in the mud, up to his knees, and unable to get free.
“He kind of climbed down to check the stability of the hill because there was a mudslide last week,” Oakland fire Battalion Chief Coy Justice said.
“As it turns out, he couldn’t climb out because his legs were stuck,” Justice said. “It was one of those things where it’s easy getting down but difficult getting up.”
Rescue crews lowered a ladder near the victim and dug the mud out around his legs. He was able to get out using the ladder, then climb back up the hill under his own power, according to Justice.
The man free by around 3 p.m., and he was not injured in the incident.
One homeowner said he has hired a geological survey team to figure out if there is a bigger problem on his property.
Kevin Best witnessed the mudslide and said his dog woke him up. His house is right next to where the mudslide happened, but city officials have not red or yellow-tagged his home.
But they are inspecting it daily, something the geological survey team he hired is doing well.
It appears rain may be to blame but the team is checking to see if there were other factors that also contributed to the mudslide.
Best said an insurance agent is coming out to look at the mudslide, but they have been told that the mudslide is not covered.Bay City News contributed to this report