A Lawrence County man was hospitalized Monday after he waspinned underneath a tractor he was trying to repair.

Rossie Branton, age unavailable, was injured during a mishapwhile repairing his tractor at his residence on Highway 587 around9:15 a.m., Monticello Fire Chief Wayne Harrison said.

“The paramedics said it wasn’t life-threatening,” he said.

Branton was outside alone splitting a tractor apart to replace aclutch, Harrison said. The tractor was set on a wooden 6×6 blockand Branton was using a come-along to lift it.

The come-along slipped, Harrison said, and the tractor droppedback, trapping Branton’s arm between it and the 6×6 block.

“It broke his shoulder. He was transferred to Hattiesburg forsurgery,” the chief said.

Branton’s wife made the 911 call to get assistance, Harrisonsaid.

The chief said Branton was expecting a friend to come and help,but the friend had not arrived yet and “he was just trying to getan early start on the repair.”

Monticello firefighters worked with members of Topeka’s FirstRescue to free Branton.

“The ground was muddy and uneven, so that complicated things alittle,” Harrison said.

Firefighters used air bags and the Jaws of Life to lift thetractor far enough off Branton to extract his arm.

He was then taken to an ambulance and transported to LawrenceCounty Hospital. He was later transferred to a Hattiesburg hospitalfor surgery to repair the damaged shoulder, Harrison said.