A hiker who fell off a cliff in southeastern Connecticut Saturday was taken by helicopter to a local hospital following a technical rescue.
According to Connecticut State Police, local fire and police officials were notified of a person who had fallen off a cliff at Lantern Hill in North Stonington, Connecticut shortly after 11:30 a.m. on Saturday, November 15.
According to TrailForks.com, Lantern Hill is the western terminus of the 16-mile Narragansett Trail and features the best overlook in southern Connecticut. It is an exposed, rock-faced hill, and the site states the summit has “incredible exposure to vertical rock cliffs on both east and west sides.”
Upon arriving at the scene, one rescue crew began trekking toward the initially reported location on the western exposure. At the same time, another crew entered from the side with eastern exposure. This team reportedly located the patient, who had fallen from the summit onto a lower ledge.
According to officials with the North Stonington Volunteer Fire Company, the difficulty of the terrain and location of the hiker meant they’d need a specialized technical rescue and additional manpower, which they requested from multiple New London County agencies.
Crews deployed an Arizona Vortex tripod and rope systems to access, package, and vertically raise the patient to the top of the cliff, where an awaiting paramedic began advanced care.
At 2:53 p.m., the patient was secured in the Stokes basket. By 3:47 p.m., crews had lowered the patient down the hiking trail to an all-terrain vehicle staged part way down the hill.
The hiker was taken to a hospital by LifeStar helicopter at 4 p.m. Officials did not release details of the hiker’s condition or injuries.
