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An intensive care paramedic was lowered with a winch to assist a man hanging from a cliff 20 meters above the rocks in Titahi Bay.
One person was seriously injured after falling off a cliff, while another was rescued unharmed after hanging from a cliff 20 meters above the rocks.
The pair were part of a larger group climbing at Whitireia Park in Titahi Bay, Porirua, around 6 p.m. Tuesday.
The person who fell on the rocks was taken by Westpac Rescue helicopter to Wellington Hospital, where he was in serious but stable condition.
Crewman Mike Beausoleil said the second climber was lucky as he only suffered a few cuts and bruises.
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Emergency services at the scene of the incident where two people fell off a cliff in Titahi Bay.
An intensive care paramedic had to go down with a winch to put a harness on the man who was then carried to safety from the cliff.
“It was challenging work, the person was at risk of serious injury,” Beausoleil said.
Greater Wellington Park Manager Jo Frances said they were “very concerned” upon learning of the incident, which occurred in an area that is not a popular place to climb.
A Westpac rescue helicopter arrived at the scene in time to lift the man off the cliff before he fell onto the rocks.
Beausoleil said the rescue helicopter does “quite a bit of work” in the area during the summer, when the park is full of people doing outdoor activities.
Whitireia Park is a promontory comprising approximately 180 hectares of grassland, overlooking the island of Mana and the port of Porirua.
Frances said the incident highlighted the risks inherent in the challenging terrain of some of the regional parks.
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Greater Wellington Regional Council park manager Jo Frances advises people to exercise caution and assess risks before climbing in their regional parks.
He said the council strongly recommended looking out for natural features like rivers, streams, steep slopes, cliffs, etc., and urged everyone to “realistically know their limits before embarking on adventures.”
“Climbing accidents are very rare in our regional parks … Anyone looking to climb or rock should assess the risk beforehand. Much of our steep terrain is away from roads and managed areas, and conditions change rapidly, ”he said.
“Our advice is that people should avoid risky, reckless or impulsive behavior around features such as rivers, cliffs, steep slopes and, in some parks, road traffic.”
