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Press Notice No: 393/08
Monday,
December 22, 2008
Posted 11:48 GMT
MAN RESCUED FROM 400 FT CLIFF FACE
The Beer Coastguard Rescue
Team have just rescued a BASE jumper who was clinging to a cliff face, 200 feet down the 400 foot Beer
Head.
BASE jumping is the sport of using a parachute to jump from fixed
objects. BASE is an acronym that stands for the four categories of objects from which one can jump;
building, antenna, span, and earth.
The 21 year old man from Herefordshire had launched himself with his canopy from the top of Beer Head
early this morning but had drifted back into the cliff face and was trapped there, where he had managed
to find foot and hand holds.
One of the other solo base jumpers made a 999 call at 7.45 am and informed Portland Coastguard of the
incident. The Beer Coastguard Rescue Team were sent to the scene and lowered a winchman 200 ft down the cliff
to the casualty. The winchman was then able to retrieve and secure the base jumper and both were lowered down to the
base of the cliff. The rescue helicopter from RAF Chivenor was also on scene, assisting the cliff man with instructions
on the location of the BASE jumper. When the jumper and cliff man arrived at the bottom of the cliffs, they were taken onboard the helicopter
and airlifted back to the top of Beer Head.
Maddy Davey, Portland Coastguard Watch Officer says:
I am pleased to say that the BASE jumper was uninjured by his ordeal. He was very fortunate that there were other solo jumpers in the vicinity and that they were able to
raise the alarm.
The operation to rescue this man was carried out with superb skill and professionalism by the Beer Coastguard
Rescue Team who lowered their cliff man 200 ft down a sheer and crumbly cliff face to rescue the man
who was lucky enough to have found foot and hand holds on the cliff.
It may be of interest that in March 1996 the Beer Coastguard Rescue Team conducted an almost identical
rescue of a base jumper who had crashed halfway down against the cliff at Beer Head but on that occasion
the impact caused that casualty quite serious injuries (believed to be a broken arm and leg along with
loss of blood). He was successfully rescued and conveyed to hospital for treatment having survived the
incident.
Posted By: Joanne Groenenberg
For
further details contact:
The Maritime & Coastguard Agency Press Office
023
8032 9401