A man in China noticed that their neighbor was stuck on a rooftop amid a flood and used his drone to lift them up to safety.
A clip of a man getting lifted by a drone, in which he can be seen dangling high up in the air before landing safely on the ground, has been going viral on social media.
Prior to this rescue, the man was trapped in a two-story, crumbling house in the middle of a flood in Liuzhou, China. According to Telegraph UK, he tried calling for help while stuck on a rooftop. However, authorities and rescue boats were unable to reach him due to the severity of the rising flood waters.
In a surprising turn of events, a neighbor who owns an agricultural drone that can carry weights up to 100kg ended up repurposing the machine to save the man’s life.
Man transported to safety with neighbor’s drone amid flood
Drone operator Lai Zhongzin spotted the man who was stuck in a life-threatening situation, given that he was seen stranded in a house surrounded by green-grey water from the flood.
He told CCTV that, at that point, the water had already “reached a dangerous level.” Even though his drone is typically used to carry construction materials and spray fertilizer, he didn’t hesitate to use it to give the man a lift.
By attaching a long cord and a sandbag that acts like a seat to help stabilize the weight, his drone was able to carry the man and soar approximately 65 feet into the air before safely lowering him on the road.
Before the drone lifted him, Lai had told the man over the phone to tie his hands and feet to the safety buckle and sit on the sandbag.
The whole rescue also reportedly took less than two minutes, with the drone able to navigate through trees and pylons in the area.
Lai was aware that what he had done was illegal, yet he stated that he only wanted to save the man’s life.
“I know that manned drones are illegal, but at the time, I was worried about the house collapsing and was eager to save people, so I don’t recommend that you imitate it.”
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