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Firefighters use forklift to move 900-lb. man

  • Story Highlights
  • Man suffers from rare genetic disorder that leads to chronic hunger
  • Brother says man hasn't left house since 2003
  • Visiting nurse, concerned about man's health, summons help
  • Hole cut in side of 900-lb. man's house, forklift used to move him
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LANSING, Michigan (AP) -- Firefighters cut a hole in the side of a house and used a forklift to extricate a 900-pound man from his second-floor bedroom after a visiting nurse became worried about his health.

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Firefighters and paramedicas take the man from the house he hasn't left since 2003.

Rescue workers were called in Tuesday by the nurse, who determined the 33-year-old man needed medical help, Fire Chief Tom Cochran said.

Cochran said the man had not left his home since 2003.

The man's brother, who lives with him, said he suffers from Prader-Willi Syndrome.

The rare genetic disorder creates a chronic hungry feeling that can lead to overeating and life-threatening obesity.

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Rescue workers brought in a forklift, high enough to raise a platform to a hole cut into the wall of the house. Video Watch firefighters build a platform to lift the man »

They covered the man with a blue tarp to shield him from onlookers and slid the platform onto a flatbed truck for a trip to Sparrow Hospital. E-mail to a friend E-mail to a friend

Copyright 2007 The Associated Press. All rights reserved.This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.

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