Hiker enjoying view falls off cliff in NC. Luckily, someone saw it, rescuers say
A hiker was seriously injured when he stepped toward a mountain cliff to get a better view and went careening over the edge, according to rescuers in western North Carolina.
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It happened around noon Saturday at Grandfather Mountain, and the hiker fell 50 feet to the ground below, rescuers say. The mountain is about a 115-mile drive northwest from uptown Charlotte,
“Someone saw it happen and called the communications center,” Linville-Central Rescue Squad Chief Robert Calloway told The Charlotte Observer. “That person stayed with him, continually provided information to us while we were on the way in.”
It was roughly four hours later that the hiker was pulled off the mountain and taken to a hospital for treatment of possible internal injuries and broken bones, he said.
The identities of the hiker and witness were not released.
A crew of 25 people – most of them well-trained volunteers – participated in the complex effort to rescue the man, Calloway said.
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The fall happened about two miles from the nearest road on the Grandfather Trail, which includes “rocky cliffs where progress is hand-over-hand, with cables and ladders,” Grandfather.com reports. Rescuers were able to access the hiker by using the 3.6-mile Profile Trail, Calloway said.
“He was able to tell us what happened. He said he stepped off the trail to get a view and slipped,” Calloway said. “He fell straight down to the ground below. Landed on dirt.”
The rescuers moved the hiker about 150 feet to an open area where he could be lifted to a helicopter sent by NC Emergency Management. The man was then transferred to a medical helicopter from Highlands Emergency Air Rescue & Transport, officials said.
Multiple departments and agencies were involved in the operation, including Linville Volunteer Fire Department, EMS Avery, Avery County Emergency Management, Crossnore Volunteer Fire Department, Banner Elk Volunteer Fire & Rescue, Grandfather Mountain State Park and NC Mountain Rescue Team, officials said.
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