Watch Mich. Police Use 'Human Pyramid' to Save Man Hanging Out Window

With the help of neighbors, Michigan police formed a human pyramid over the weekend to save an elderly man suffering from dementia who was hanging upside down from a second-story window.

Canton police officers responded to a tense call at about 3 a.m. Saturday at a residence involving a man with dementia, WXYZ-TV reports. The man's wife told police that her husband became confused trying to exit a second-story room and thought he could use the window to get out.

Fortunately, the window closed on the man's foot, preventing him from falling presumably to his death from that height, according to his wife. That left hm dangling by his foot, yelling for help.

“He was screaming, ‘Help me, Help me. Blair, I’m going to die. Get a ladder,’” Blair Kraft, a neighbor, told WXYZ.

Kraft retrieved a ladder, but he thought it was too short. His wife called 9-1-1, and when officers reached the scene, they were able to use the ladder to quickly secure the man.

Officers and bystanders created a human pyramid outside the house to keep the man supported. Inside, two other officers were able to pull the man to safety.

“There’s a lot of pressure and trauma that’s happening to the body when you’re 78 years old, and you’re hanging by your foot outside a window. That’s a lot of trauma,” Police Chief Chad Baugh told WXYZ. “We were so fortunate we had some quick-thinking residents, some real ingenious police officers, and they all came together."

Baugh also praised "the love (and) the compassion that came out through the officers” during the rescue.