Firefighters Hang Christmas Lights For Man Who Fell Nearly 6-Feet Off Ladder
Erik Gaines was untangling Christmas lights at his home when he fell.
— -- A crew of firefighters in Washington state helped save Christmas for the family of a man who fell nearly six feet off a ladder while trying to hang Christmas lights at his home.
Erik Gaines, 35, was home alone with his three young children Sunday decorating the outside of the family’s Puyallup, Washington, home for the holidays. He had just hung the first string of lights on his two-story home when the base of the ladder kicked out from underneath him and he crashed down.
Gaines’ left leg got caught in one of the rungs of the ladder as he crashed onto the ground. His 11- and 7-year-old daughters called 911 for their dad while Gaines’ 1-year-old son slept in his crib.
Just as Gaines’ wife pulled up to the house, rescue crews from Central Pierce Fire & Rescue arrived to take Gaines to the hospital.
As Gaines was treated at the hospital for injuries, including a torn rotator cuff, broken leg and a chipped bone on his shoulder, he received good news. The same firefighters who rescued him were planning to come back to his house on their day off to finish hanging his Christmas lights.
"They were so upset, so we thought let’s just give back and spread a little joy," Sean Irwin, one of the four firefighters who put up the lights on Tuesday, told ABC News. "We thought it’d be cool if they pulled in home from the hospital and they had their lights up."
Irwin said the firefighters had a relatively easy job to do because Gaines had so carefully laid out the lights for his home. The completed the job in about one hour.
"Putting up lights was pushed to the back burner after my fall," Gaines said. "But when I heard they offered, it definitely got me emotional to know that they had thought to do that."
The firefighters also told Gaines they will be back in January to finish the job.
"They called when we got home from the hospital and made sure the timers were all working for the lights to go on and off and offered to come back after the first of the year to take the lights down," Gaines said.
Gaines is now home from the hospital as he awaits at least one more surgery to repair his injuries.
"My family and friends have taken pictures for me and put them on social media so I can see them," said Gaines, who is now mostly immobile. "It’s really comforting to know that they're up and that my family gets to continue to celebrate as normal."
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