Man rescued from ventilation system in downtown Calgary building

Calgary firefighters freed a man who entered the ventilation system at the old YWCA building at Macleod Trail and 5th Avenue S.E. on Jan. 13, 2023.

Firefighters conducted an unusual, painstaking rescue at a downtown building Friday night.

They freed a man who entered the ventilation system at the old YWCA building at Macleod Trail and 5th Avenue S.E.

The building is boarded up and fenced off.

It housed the YW until a few years ago.

The fire department says, somehow, a trespasser got into a cold-air vent on the third floor.

The technical rescue team responded, and firefighters started looking for him using an aerial ladder truck.

Eventually, they determined the man had made his way through the ventilation system, all the way to the subbasement.

Crews then used a saw to cut a hole in the building and they freed the man.

He suffered minor abrasions, and was put into the care of EMS.

It's believed the man may be homeless and was in the ventilation system for a number of hours.

Police say it's too early to say if charges may be laid.