CAPE TOWN - A hiker in Cape Town was rescued after he obediently followed one of the golden rules – call for assistance.
According to the Wilderness Search And Rescue (WSAR) spokesperson Johan Marais, a call came of a man who had taken a fall near the top of the Hiddingh Ravine, below the Smuts track at about 10.35am on Friday.
He said information received stated the hiker lost his glasses after taking the fall and was afraid to continue the trail alone.
The man also reported that his cellphone battery was running low.
Marais said the hiker was instructed to wait for the rescue team.
“The team gathered at Constantia Nek from where they were transported with 4x4 vehicles into the back of Table Mountain from where they intended hiking down towards the person’s location,” said Marais.
He said the hasty team left the vehicles, at about 12.37pm, on the way to the area the hiker was last known to have been located.
Marais said at 2pm, rescuers were searching for the man in windy conditions and had poor visibility because of the fog.
Fortunately, at 3pm the team of rescuers managed to find the man and twigged ropes to reach him.
Marais said the team were able to reach the man at 4pm and assisted him down the scramble where they then walked him to road near the Hely-Hutchinson Dam.
The rescue team, along with the hiker, were driven down to Constantia Nek.
“The patient followed one of the golden rules to rather call for assistance than attempt doing it on your own. This saved his day. Moreover, staying at the location even with a bad signal also meant that our teams could search until they had tested all locations,” Marais added.
IOL