LONDON — A man died after he was crushed below street level in London while working on a pop-up urinal on Friday, authorities said.
The man, who was not identified, was working on the telescopic urinal in the city’s theater district when he was killed, The Guardian reported.
A pop-up, or telescopic urinal, is stored underground during the day and raised hydraulically to street level at night for people to use, according to the BBC. The devices were created about 20 years ago to discourage urination in London’s streets, the news organization reported.
Man dies after being crushed by hydraulic urinal while working on the device in central London https://t.co/ayXMVoQnub
— BBC Breaking News (@BBCBreaking) January 27, 2023
Firefighters used a winch to free the man after he became trapped at Cambridge Circus, a busy intersection in London’s West End, The Associated Press reported. It took workers two hours, according to the news organization.
The Metropolitan police said: “We’re sorry to have to update that, despite the efforts of emergency services, the man who was critically injured in Cambridge Circus was pronounced dead at the scene,” the Metropolitan London Police said in a statement. “His next of kin have been informed. Cordons remain in place at the location.”
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