Long Island Woman Plunges into Backyard Cesspool on Birthday

A Long Island woman narrowly escaped serious injury on her 47th birthday after falling eight feet into a cesspool in her backyard. Danielle Tammone was in her Bohemia home when she suddenly plunged into the ground.

"It happened so quickly — my feet just sunk a little bit, but it was like seconds. I didn’t even have time," Tammone told 1010 WINS. "And then I was just ‘hoop!’ down the hole. Just in the ground."

Disoriented and in shock, Tammone began to panic as the reality of her situation set in. "And then the panic starts, because you’re like wow I could die today. This could not end well. I could be buried alive," she recalled.

Her screams for help alerted neighbors, whom she had never met before. They rushed to her aid and immediately called 911. The cesspool, described as partially crumbling stone, had sod dangerously dangling above Tammone as she cried out.

"At first, we thought she was in the shed or something. We were not looking on the ground," said neighbor Christine Chanowsky. "And they said keep screaming, don’t stop screaming."

Video footage captured the scene as neighbors raced to help, reassuring Tammone that assistance was on the way. "Oh my God, she fell into the ground," one neighbor exclaimed, while another stated, "You’re going to be fine, Danielle. They are on their way."

First responders, including firefighters, police, and EMTs, arrived promptly and worked to extract Tammone from the pit using a ladder. The ordeal lasted about ten minutes.

Tammone, a physical therapist, is now recovering from the harrowing experience. Despite the frightening event, she noted that the emergency personnel sang "happy birthday" to her, adding a bright moment to the terrifying ordeal. It remains unclear if the cesspool contained sewage.