Early Wednesday morning, a garbage truck came to empty a dumpster at The Humanity Project property on Saint George Street.

Unbeknownst to the driver, a man was sleeping inside the bin, which was full of cardboard boxes. What follows in the video clip are panicked moments of screaming and yelling as the man tries to get the driver’s attention.

The man was later helped out of the truck by firefighters.

Moncton Fire Chief Conrad Landry said crews put a ladder inside the dumpster so the man could climb out.

“We’re happy that no one was injured but it could have been much worse,” Landry said.

“He was lucky in the aspect that normally, these trucks, after they have so many loads, they have a compactor built inside that automatically activates.”

The close call is what prompted The Humanity Project to post the video.

“After speaking with our friend who this happened to, we decided to release the video as a reminder to the public and government officials on the harsh reality of homelessness,” it said in a comment accompanying the clip.

“With the cold weather here and people being forced to find shelter wherever they can, we ask all garbage truck drivers to please check the dumpsters and give them a good shake before dumping them.”

Global News has spoken to The Humanity Project and reached out to Burrell, who was unavailable for an interview Friday.