Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
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Sandra Yi reporting Just how far would you go to find a piece of jewelry that had been flushed down the toilet?
When Tracey Wallace lost her two wedding bands,her husband dug deep, literally, to find them. But it would take more than a hole in her front lawn for Tracey to realize that she's a very lucky woman.
Tracey Wallace: "THIS IS THE RING THAT I WAS PROPOSED TO IN LAKE POWELL, AND THIS WAS THE RING PUT ON MY FINGER THE DAY WE WERE MARRIED."
And in a flush, they were gone.
Tracey Wallace: "THIS IS WHERE, RIGHT THERE, AND YEAH, YOU DID THAT (FLUSH)."
Sent down the toilet by her 17 month old baby, Ella Mae.
Tracey Wallace: "I DIDN'T BELIEVE I'D EVER REALLY SEE THEM AGAIN."
But that didn't stop Tracey Wallace and her husband from trying to find her two platinum wedding bands.
A day later, a neighbor broke through their drywall and, with fiber optics, was able to see one ring stuck in a pipe 34 feet underground.
Tracey Wallace: "MY HUSBAND SAID, 'ALRIGHT, THE ONLY THING STANDING IN BETWEEN US AND THIS RING IS A LOT OF WORK,' SO HE BEGAN DIGGING THIS HOLE."
They found the ring, but one was still missing. So they called the Department of Public Utilities for help.
Kim Rigby: "I DIDN'T THINK THERE WAS A CHANCE AT ALL."
Kim Rigby and Josh Braithwaite used a jetter truck to clean out the sewer line. They tried once, sending the hose down 400 feet, with no luck.
Josh Braithwaite/ Department of Public Utilities: "I SAT IN THE MANHOLD FOR A MINUTE AND I THOUGHT, IT'S GOTTA BE CLOSE. SO I HOLLERED UP TO KIMBALL AND SAID, 'WHY DON'T YOU GIVE IT ANOTHER TRY?' HE SHOT IT OUT ANOTHER 30 FEET AND PULLED IT OUT SLOW, AND WE GOT LUCKY."
Josh found Tracey's ring after sifting through sludge with his bare hands.
Kim Rigby/ Department of Public Utilities: "WHEN THE CUSTOMER JUMPED UP FOR JOY, IT FILLED MY HEART UP WITH RELIEF. IT MADE MY DAY."
Tracey calls the two men her heroes, a title Josh and Kim shake off.
Kim Rigby: "IT'S JUST PART OF OUR JOB."
Josh Braithwaite: "ALL IN A DAY'S WORK."
Public utilities workers say over the years, they've responded to 12 calls from people who've lost rings, but this is the first one they've been able to find.
As for Tracey, she now keeps the toilet lid down.
