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Police Sgt. Robert Marks and Officer Christopher Acampora, who were the first to arrive, climbed up a conveyer belt on a large compacting machine to get to the pinned 33-year-old victim from Clifton, Lt. Robert Anderson said.
Marks is a decade-long department veteran who's served in the U.S. Army and National Guard. Acampora is a rookie with nine years of military experience, including in the U.S. Marine Corps.
Working swiftly, both of them used large metal pipes that they found in the factory to free the worker from the machine, Anderson said.
His lower leg had been cut off, however, and the other leg was severely injured, the lieutenant said.
The officers quickly applied a tourniquet, then turned the situation over to Clifton firefighters, who Anderson said "further stabilized the victim, prior to conducting a challenging rescue operation."
The worker was taken to St. Joseph's University Medical Center, he said.
OSHA is investigating the incident.
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