Locks in the News: Man Gets Stuck in a Chimney After His Friends Lock Him Out

A practical joke went terribly awry recently when firefighters had to be called in the early morning hours on Sunday, July 5th to rescue a 23-year-old man who got stuck inside the chimney of a home in the north Phoenix area. Two friends of the man stated that they had locked him out of the house as a joke, prompting the young man to try to re-enter the house through the chimney. After his attempt proved unsuccessful, a confined space rescue call was placed to emergency response services, and firefighters were dispatched to the scene around 3 a.m.

Captain Aaron Ernsberger, spokesman for the Phoenix Fire Department, stated that rescue workers were able to free the man within about 30 minutes. Official Fire Department video footage shows a team of rescue workers chiseling away at the chimney wall in order to create an exit route for the trapped young man. The 23-year-old was then pulled from the chimney, and appeared to be completely covered in soot, and walking with a slight limp. He was subsequently transported to a local hospital primarily for precautionary reasons, and was listed in stable condition.

As unusual as this type of scenario is, it highlights the importance of being able to gain access to your home in a safe manner in the event that you are accidentally (or, in this case, purposefully) locked out. Keyless locks are the best option to suit this type of purpose, as they provide robust security against unwanted intruders, but they can be easily disengaged by a homeowner who has established an access code to open the lock. Using a residential keyless lock such as the SmartCode Lever 911, all you need to do is enter your personal access code into the keypad and turn the lever, and you’re inside the house with no delay and no stress.

Unfortunately, more than 90 percent of homes are equipped with traditional pin-and-tumbler locks, which would basically leave you hanging out to dry if you were to get locked out. Your only options at that point would be to call a locksmith (which could potentially cost you lots of time and lots of money), or to try and figure out which window on your house you may have forgotten to lock so that you can try to climb in through that access point. Neither scenario is desirable by any means. Especially if you bungle your re-entry and have to call the fire department.

This is just one of the many advantages of equipping your doors with keyless locks; you have much more control in a lockout scenario, which can save you both time and money. Not only that, but the convenience of being able to stroll up to your front door and punch a simple code into the keypad is much greater than fumbling around with clunky keys that can sometimes be a nuisance to keep up with.

If you want to go for even quicker access, you can choose a keyless lock that features a biometric fingerprint reader such as the Anviz L100, which will allow you to unlock the door with literally just one finger. Practically any residential keyless lock available through GoKeyless would be preferred over a traditional lock when it comes to dealing with a lockout situation. And no, we don’t ever recommend trying to enter through the chimney. 🙂

SmartCode 911 Touchpad Electronic Lock with Tustin Lever – Brass

Anviz L100-II Nanotechnology Fingerprint Lock & Card Reader