Man trapped in portable toilet for 8 hours trying to retrieve Mountain Dew bottle

Some rescue calls are difficult to explain.

This one began with a missing bottle of Mountain Dew and ended with firefighters dismantling a portable toilet.

Authorities in Kansas City, Missouri, responded after a man became trapped inside the holding tank beneath a portable restroom while attempting to retrieve a bottle of Mountain Dew he said he had dropped there the previous night. By the time help arrived, he had reportedly been stuck for about eight hours.

The unusual incident has since become one of the internet's most shared odd-news stories.

The man was discovered when an employee from Patriot Portable Restrooms arrived to collect portable toilets that had been installed for a FIFA World Cup watch party.

After knocking on one unit, the worker heard someone inside.

When a nearby police officer unlocked the door, the man said he couldn't reach the exit. Responders initially couldn't see anyone.

Then, according to officials, a head suddenly appeared through the toilet opening.

The man had climbed into the waste holding tank beneath the seat and become trapped.

Firefighters cut the toilet apart

Kansas City firefighters first tried talking the man through climbing out on his own.

When that failed, crews dismantled part of the portable toilet to free him safely.

After the rescue, firefighters rinsed the man with water from one of their trucks before the incident concluded. Authorities have not publicly identified him or said whether he required medical treatment.

Officials have not said why the bottle was important enough for the man to climb into the holding tank in the first place. Whatever the reason, the attempt left him spending nearly a full workday in one of the least enviable places imaginable before firefighters finally brought the ordeal to an end.