Matilda Campbell, a young hiker, was successfully rescued after a seven-hour ordeal when she slipped into a crevice while attempting to get her phone, leaving her upside down and trapped between boulders in Hunter Valley.
Hiker Rescued After Seven-Hour Ordeal Between Boulders
Hiker Rescued After Seven-Hour Ordeal Between Boulders
A young woman's desperate bid to recover her phone leads to a dramatic rescue in New South Wales.
In a remarkable incident earlier this month, a young woman faced a harrowing seven-hour ordeal after slipping into a three-metre crevice in New South Wales' Hunter Valley while desperately trying to retrieve her mobile phone. The hiker, identified as Matilda Campbell, fell into the narrow gap between two boulders, resulting in a challenging situation for local emergency services.
Campbell found herself hanging upside down for over an hour before help arrived, as her friends' initial efforts to free her proved fruitless. Paramedic Peter Watts, with a decade of experience, stated, "In my 10 years as a rescue paramedic I had never encountered a job quite like this," describing the intricacies of the rescue as both challenging and incredibly rewarding.
Rescue efforts involved leveraging multiple boulders with a winch, including one weighing approximately 500 kg (1,100 lb), to create a gap large enough to extract Campbell from the awkward "S" bend position she was stuck in. Photos released by the New South Wales Ambulance reveal the precarious situation, with Campbell suspended between the boulders by her feet.
Remarkably, after such a lengthy ordeal, Campbell was left with only minor scratches and bruises, although her mobile phone was not salvaged. Grateful for the assistance, she expressed her thanks to the rescue team online, noting, "Thank you to the team who saved me; you guys are literally lifesavers. Too bad about the phone though." The story serves as a reminder of the unpredictability of outdoor adventures and the importance of safety precautions.
