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Man hit by car after exploring storm drain
By Niesha Lofing - nlofing@sacbee.com
Published 12:00 am PDT Wednesday, June 25, 2008
Story appeared in METRO section, Page B3
A Sacramento man is in critical condition and his brother and girlfriend have been arrested after the trio went cavorting in a storm drain and had to be rescued early Tuesday.
A 26-year-old man, his 19-year-old girlfriend Rhea Schroeder and his 24-year-old brother Jacob Reinitz, who live in the North Sacramento area, had been drinking and decided at about 1:30 a.m. to climb into a storm drain in the Florin Road area, said Sacramento Police Lt. Mike Bray.
"Apparently they had done this as kids and wanted to relive their youthful experiences and try it again," he said.
Police did not release the name of the injured man.
Bray said the threesome crawled into the large drain through a manhole on the east side of the railroad tracks, near Luther Burbank High School.
After walking about 200 yards in the drain, they decided to come up. But when the older brother climbed atop Reinitz and attempted to lift the manhole cover – which was located in the middle of the street – a passing car struck him, Bray said.
"His head was either pinched with the manhole cover against the side of the road, or the tire struck him," Bray said. "We're not completely certain about the sequence of events."
The man fell back into the hole.
Police were called to the scene by the motorist, who had a flat tire.
Fire crews were then called out to help extricate the trio. Firefighters had to use heavy equipment to get the three out of the drain.
"Kind of like pulling a kid out of a well," Bray said.
The 26-year-old, whose name was not released, suffered a skull fracture and was taken to UC Davis Medical Center, where he was in critical condition.
Reinitz and Schroeder were arrested on suspicion of being drunk in public and are being held in Sacramento County jail.
About the writer:
- Call The Bee's Niesha Lofing, (916) 321-1270.
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