A contractor's employee working in a sewer in the Town of Raymore, Mo., on Oct. 12, became unhooked from his safety line and was carried through a 27-inch pipe for more than a mile before he was rescued. Daniel Collins, of Collins, Mo., was listed in critical condition Tuesday night at Saint Luke's Hospital in Kansas City, according to a news report from the Associated Press.

"South Metropolitan Fire District Chief Randy Adams said Collins was being treated for hypothermia and had been administered antibiotics because he may have swallowed sewage," the news report said. "Collins disappeared shortly after 8 a.m. Tuesday after descending into the sewage system in the town of Raymore. Adams said crews frantically searched manholes along a 1.5-mile route near a golf course.

"After about 90 minutes, firefighter and paramedic Antonio Smith heard Collins calling out, 'Guys, I'm down here. Can you help me?'"

Colleagues lowered Smith into the sewer, where he found Collins about 12 feet down. Smith lifted Collins onto his shoulder, and a crew on the surface helped lift him out. They covered Collins with coats until an air ambulance. The news report said Collins seemed to go in and out of consciousness and was very weak.

The report said Collins was tethered before he entered the line as required by confined-space entry procedures. His harness was still on when he was found, and it was not known how he became disconnected. Collins is employed by Rosetta Construction of Springfield, Mo., which was servicing parts of the community's sewer system.