Firefighters Bust Through Chimney Wall and Find These Dangling Inside (UPDATED)

RIVERSIDE, Calif. (TheBlaze/AP) — Firefighters needed two hours to free a female who was trapped inside a fireplace chimney at a Riverside County home, officials said.

About two dozen firefighters responded about 5 a.m. Saturday to a residence in an unincorporated area near Riverside where they found a female lodged inside a chimney, according to a statement posted on the Riverside County Fire Department website.

Image source: KNBC-TV via Engineer Jared Hazelaar/CAL FIRE Riverside

The female was not identified, and no age was provided. Once freed, she was taken to a hospital with moderate injuries.

Officials told KNBC-TV she entered the chimney from the roof but didn't say why she attempted the move in the first place.

Riverside County Sheriff's Department spokeswoman Patty Stoyer said the victim was a friend of the homeowner, according to the Press-Enterprise.

TheBlaze on Saturday asked the sheriff's department if the female found in the chimney will face charges and who contacted authorities, but the official there did not know.

UPDATE 3:40 p.m. EST Sunday: Homeowner Tony Hernandez told KCAL-TV the female stuck in the chimney is the mother of his three children, and that she doesn't live with them and isn't allowed to see them.

“I don’t like the way she’s acting or what she’s doing," he told the station. "That’s not good for my kids.”

The 35-year-old estranged girlfriend tried to get in by opening a door, but finding it locked she climbed to the roof and tried out the chimney — even removing her clothes to make more room, KCAL reported.

Hernandez told the station he woke up to her cries for help and tried to get help her out with an extension cord to no avail.