A ROCK climber has had a lucky escape after plummeting nearly 23ft from the top of Thurlstone Quarry.
The man and his friend, who both live in Barnsley town centre and are believed to be in their 40s, were experienced climbers and had been planning some new climbing routes.
On Wednesday evening, they had planned to abseil down the rock face, clear vegetation and then climb back up.
The man had just set up a belay, which is a device used to control the rope, and decided to fetch his shovel. As he returned and was about to clip in, the whole of the top of the rock face gave way, sending him crashing to the bottom of the quarry.
A spokesman for Woodhead Mountain Rescue, who were called out to assist with the rescue, said luckily for him, the climber managed to stay on top of the falling rocks - rather than falling undernearth - avoiding potentially serious injuries or worse.
His shocked friend, who looked on in horror, alerted the emergency services.
Woodhead Mountain Rescue were called out at about 8.30pm and were assisted by Yorkshire Air Ambulance, the Hazardous Area Response Team and Yorkshire Air Ambulance staff who travelled there by ambulance and not helicopter.
The man was taken to Barnsley Hospital, and was discharged at 2am yesterday with no serious injuries.
The spokesman for Woodhead Mountain Rescue said: “They were very experienced climbers who knew what they were doing.
“Quarries are known for lots of loose rocks, that’s one of the dangers of climbing in a quarry - they are more dangerous than a normal crag face.
“It has been there a long time. I’m not an expert but with the hot weather and the ground drying out, it could have contributed.
“The rock which fell down was the size of a car bonnet and probably weighed about two or three tonnes. It could have killed him outright if it had hit him.
“He managed to stay on top of the rock as it was falling and his injuries are minor compared to what the outcome could have been.
“He has been very lucky.”
He said the climber was placed on to a vacuum mattress for immobilisation and on to a stretcher, and carried through the quarry to an ambulance. He was taken to hospital with suspected spinal and leg injuries.
The spokesman said: “He was comfortable, I think he had been given some pain relief. But I think it was the shock of it as well.
“His friend was in shock as well. It takes some believing that your friend could fall and stay on top of the rock and come out with only minor injuries.
“He is very thankful that his friend is still alive.”
The spokesman praised all the emergency services for working together during the rescue.
Do you know the climber or his friend? Call Lynsey Bradford on 734211.
