Binman narrowly escapes being ‘crushed to death’ after he is dragged into refuse lorry at work

City council launches investigation after video reveals dangerous accident

A binman narrowly escaped being “crushed to death” after he was dragged into a refuse lorry while working in Birmingham.

Video has emerged of the dramatic incident, in which the man’s clothes appear to become caught on the lifting mechanism of the vehicle before he is pulled into the back of the lorry.

He escaped injury when a colleague spotted the accident and rushed over to press a button to stop the vehicle.

The footage was sent to BirminghamLive by a man, who has chosen to be anonymous, with links to bin collection services in the city.

“I was shocked when I saw this. The binman is literally a second away from being crushed to death,” the man said.

“If his colleague hadn't seen what happened and rushed to his aid he would probably be dead,” he added.

Birmingham City Council has said it is currently investigating the incident.

The man who released the video has said he believes the accident took place at the end of October last year but it is unclear where exactly the incident was filmed.

“Health and safety is of paramount importance to us for both our employees and the residents they serve when going about their daily duties,” a spokesperson for the council said.

“We are currently investigating what led to this alleged incident and are therefore unable to comment on specific details.”