An Illinois electrician found himself in a terrifying situation after getting trapped 130 feet in the air inside a truck stop sign for six hours, eventually recording a “goodbye” message for his family before rescuers were able to bring him down safely.
The incident involving A. J. Gow happened on July 21 during what was supposed to be a routine service call at a Petro truck stop off Interstate 55 in Wilmington, Illinois. Gow and a coworker had climbed up to the massive sign using a telescopic boom lift to work on its internal electronics.
Gow eventually stepped out of the lift bucket and climbed inside the sign itself. Because of the summer heat and the lack of airflow inside the metal structure, he asked his coworker to head back down and get a battery-powered fan and some water.
That was when things went wrong.
As his coworker attempted to bring the equipment back up, the telescopic boom lift malfunctioned and stopped working. Gow was left stranded inside the sign, about 130 feet above the ground.
The situation was made worse by the cramped conditions. The inside of the sign was only about 16 inches wide, leaving Gow with very little room to move. With the metal structure absorbing the summer heat, the space quickly became unbearably hot.
At first, Gow remained hopeful that the problem with the lift would be fixed. But by around 2 p.m., four hours after he became trapped, the heat had started to take a serious toll. He was experiencing severe dizziness and dehydration and eventually told his coworkers to call emergency services.
As the hours passed, Gow began to realize just how serious the situation had become. He took out his phone and recorded messages for his wife and children.
According to People, Gow said in one of the messages, “God forbid if something were to actually happen — it was my final words. So essentially a goodbye without saying goodbye.”
When the Wilmington Fire Protection District arrived, rescuers quickly realized they had a problem of their own. The sign did not have an internal escape ladder, meaning Gow could not simply climb down. The department also did not have equipment capable of reaching him. Its tallest ladder trucks could reach about 100 feet — still 30 feet short of where Gow was trapped.
Fire officials then began searching nearby communities for a larger piece of equipment that could reach the top of the sign.
Eventually, they found a boom lift at a construction site in Joliet, Illinois, roughly 17 to 20 miles away. Getting the equipment to Wilmington as quickly as possible became the next challenge. Illinois State Police provided an emergency escort as the massive transport truck made its way to the truck stop.
Just before 4 p.m., after roughly six hours trapped inside the sign, Gow was finally brought safely back to the ground. He was taken to the hospital and treated for dehydration.
He’s already back to work
A month after the ordeal, Gow said he had already returned to work. The experience, however, prompted his workplace to take another look at its safety procedures.
Despite everything that happened, Gow said he was grateful that the ordeal ended the way it did.
“I’m so fortunate that it turned out the way that it did, and I’m able to look back in hindsight and laugh at it,” he said.
Published: Aug 22, 2026 05:57 am