An unprecedented rescue took place Thursday in North Idaho after three semi trucks collided.
A medical team arrived at the accident and was forced to amputate a man's leg right there on the interstate to save his life.
Police said traffic was slowly moving on Interstate 90 near the Rose Hill interchange after a semi jackknifed.
A man in a semi hauling logs was stopped in the left lane because of traffic when another semi was unable to stop sideswiping the log truck.
Then, in a chain reaction, a third semi driven by Aleksey Tikhonov rammed the other two semis, trapping Tikhonov beneath the steering wheel and dashboard under several logs in the sleeping compartment of the truck.
Realizing Tikhonov wouldn't make it through the hours it would have taken for crews to pry him from the wreckage, the medical team wedged themselves into the crushed cab of the truck to perform the amputation of one of the man's legs to free him from the wreckage.
Chris Way of Kootenai County EMS said an operation like this has never been done before in Kootenai County and only happens roughly 5 times a year in all of North America.
Tikhonov is listed in fair condition at Kootenai Health.
Another man in one of the other semis was airlifted to a Spokane Hospital where he is listed in serious condition.
