A serious incident occurred in Hillcrest this morning when a fireman fell off of a cliff while battling a veld fire in Hillcrest.
The fireman, aged 46, was battling the blaze between a thick tree lining, when he fell down the 50 meter cliff. When ER24 paramedics arrived at the scene they knew that the situation was serious and that the emergency personnel had to gain access to the injured fireman as quickly as possible.
Rescue personnel from rescue tech used specialised rope rescue techniques to abseil down to the patient and to lower the necessary equipment. Once with injured fireman paramedics assessed the patient and found that he had sustained a broken left leg as well as suspected back and neck injuries.
Due the patients injuries and the area in which he was, the 15th squadron was called in to airlift the patient to hospital. The patient was later airlifted to a nearby medical facility where he was admitted in a stable condition.
Andre Visser, ER24