Homeless Man Rescued From Trash Truck

ORANGE COUNTY, CA- An Orange County man happened to be in the right place at the right time, a coincidence that may have saved a life.

Marc Albert says he wasn't thinking about the danger when he climbed into a garbage truck.

He was just trying to retrieve some of his belongings that had been dumped from a trash bin.

Albert might have gone unnoticed if it weren't for the truck driver who noticed Albert climbing into the back.

The driver called Santa Ana Police

Officer Roger Tolosa climbed up to the top of the truck, and noticed Albert trapped inside, surrounded by garbage.

Police called the Orange County Fire Authority looking at an eight foot drop, the only way to get Albert out would be by ladder.

The 55-year old homeless man admits it was scary, but at the time he says he was more concerned about finding his art supplies.

"It's got some large hooks that help compress the trash and it's quite dangerous in there. The trash truck compresses the trash and lucky for him none of those switches were turned or he could have been crushed," said Officer Tolosa.

"The most important stuff that I had which was my pens and pencils and drawing supplies," Albert explained.

"The Waste Management said they have about 3 incidents a year where people lose their lives from being scooped into the trash truck so it can be definitely dangerous," Tolosa said.

Police say their homeless outreach officers will meet with albert to see if they can help him get off the streets.