Boy, 8, freed from block of concrete

AN EIGHT-YEAR-OLD boy was trapped in a block of concrete for nearly four hours before firefighters could free him.

The boy was playing hide-and-seek with friends in Roubaix (Nord) when his leg became caught in a hole in a concrete block near the base of an electricity pylon at the edge of a playing field.

Firefighters at first tried to free the child’s foot using oil and soap, but in the end used drilling equipment and a concrete saw to release him in an operation that lasted nearly four hours.

The boy was taken to hospital, but it has been reported that he suffered only a sprained ankle.

The blocks of concrete had been placed at the foot of the pylon to deter thieves from trying to steal copper.

Photo: France 3 / screengrab