A man doing a very poor imitation of Santa got stuck in the chimney of a Bristol, Connecticut, parks building.
According to The Associated Press, the man had entered the chimney in an effort to retrieve his dog, which had gotten stuck in the building’s bathroom after the door had locked automatically.
Firefighters were able to get the man out of the chimney, and the dog was unharmed. The ordeal ended up costing between about $5,000 and $10,000 in damage, as the rescue involved removing parts of the building and the chimney.
“It is a bit of a crazy scenario,” says Erica Benoit, of Bristol Parks, Recreation, Youth and Community Services. “Our parks staff is working with the police department and the fire department to make sure that doesn’t happen again. If he had just contacted police in the first place, we might have been able to avoid the situation.”
The man has been charged with burglary, trespassing and criminal mischief.