Durban – A hiker sustained serious injuries after she slipped and fell 4m at the Krantzkloof Nature Reserve in Kloof at noon on Sunday.
According to Netcare 911 spokesperson Shawn Herbst, the patient fell down a path, landing on her back.
Herbst said a team of rescuers including KZN Wildlife Rangers, RescueTech, Ethekwini Fire and Rescue Services and Marshall Security Community Response had to hike through difficult terrain to reach the woman who was deep in the nature reserve.
“The woman was found to have suspected spinal injuries and fractures and was treated on scene by a Netcare 911 Advanced Life Support paramedic.
“Due to the nature of her injuries as well as the terrain, a Netcare 911 helicopter air ambulance was activated to airlift the patient to a specialist facility.”
Herbst said the rescue took approximately 5 hours.
In a similar incident in November, a woman lost her footing and fell 4m at Kloof Gorge waterfall.
Herbst said that rescue took 4 hours.
The 52-year-old woman sustained serious injuries and was also airlifted to hospital.
Herbst said these incidents were extremely common and he urged hikers to never hike alone.
“If you do, make sure you let people know where you are.
“Also, it is important to have contact numbers of emergency services numbers on hand so that you can immediately call for help.”
Some of the emergency numbers:
Rescuetech Search and Rescue: 084 243 4898
Ethekwini Fire and Rescue: 031-361 0000
Krantzkloof Nature Reserve: 079 702 6452
IOL