Man rescued from cliff

Press, 25 September 1989, Page 8

Man rescued from cliff

PA Auckland A fire officer yesterday scaled a cliff face at Karekare Beach to reach a man who lay injured on a ledge of crumbling rock. An architecture student, Mr Paul Sheehan, was rescued by helicopter after Senior Fire Officer Warwick Bolton, of the Laingholm Cliff Rescue Unit, attached a rope. A crowd of 150 watched from the west coast beach as Mr Bolton scaled the dangerous Watchman’s

Rock to reach the dazed climber, who fell while descending the 80m cliff. Mr Bolton used small trees as an anchor for a rope which was tied round Mr Sheehan to secure him until the helicopter lifted him to safety about 3 p.m. The student, aged 21, who was on the ledge for 80 minutes, was taken to Auckland Hospital with minor injuries. Mr Sheehan had descended 35m when he slipped and fell 10m to

the ledge which saved him from plunging to the sand below. A Karekare Surf Life Saving Club spokesman, Mr Bob Harvey, said yesterday four people had died from falls while trying to climb Watchman’s Rock. Through binoculars, Mr Harvey said he could see Mr Sheehan was dazed and hurt as he balanced on the ledge. “If he moved he would have fallen, but he clung on,” he said.