Cliff fall walker is saved after hanging by his fingertips 150 feet above the sea

• St Abbs Head is a popular destination for walkers and bird watchers but its clifftop paths can be dangerous and walkers are advised to take care. Picture: Jon Savage

The alarm was raised after the walker slipped down a 20ft ravine, leaving him clinging on to rocks and dirt to prevent him from plunging further down the cliffs.

The 54-year-old had been walking with his two sons near the lighthouse in St Abbs in Berwickshire when he lost his footing and fell down the side of the rocks.

It is thought that one of his sons called the emergency services and told them his father was hanging on by his fingertips.

Eyemouth and Dunbar Coastguard, a lifeboat team from St Abbs and officers from Lothian and Borders Police were involved in the rescue operation and a helicopter was also scrambled from HMS Gannet in Prestwick.

The man was eventually rescued after a specialist team took to the cliffs and pulled him up using ropes and wires.

A Forth coastguard spokesman said the walker had a "very lucky escape".

He added: "The first thing we had to establish was how far down he was and if he was injured.

"He was very, very lucky because where he was located there was a 150ft drop right below him and he was holding on for grim life to rocks and dirt with literally his fingertips.

"One of his sons made a 999 call saying his father had slipped down a ravine. He was obviously very distressed. He was terrified that he was going to slip further down the cliff face."

He said that a team of specialists rescued him after climbing down the ravine secured by ropes.

"They assessed his condition and decided to pull him back up the cliffs with ropes.

"He was then checked over by paramedics and given the all clear once he had recovered from his ordeal."

He added that the man, believed to have been from the Newcastle area, had been delighted with the outcome.

"It goes without saying that he was very very relieved to be safe and unharmed. He was very grateful to everyone involved in the rescue effort and took a lot of time and effort making sure he thanked everyone involved."

The coastguard also mapped out the time line for the rescue which happened on Saturday afternoon.

"The call was received by Forth Coastguard at 4:52pm. By 5:34pm the casualty had been secured by a Coastguard rescue cliff team, and by 5:50 - just under an hour after the call was received - the casualty had been taken to the top of the cliff and was receiving attention from the paramedics."

The coastguards also warned any walkers to be careful when walking along clifftops.

A spokesman for Forth coastguards said: "We would urge people to keep back from cliff edges on coastal walks because they could be unstable."

One local resident, from nearby village Coldingham, said they had seen police around the area.

"At first no-one knew what was going on, there was just a lot of police and a rescue helicopter buzzing around.

However, later we later heard that a walker had had a lucky escape because he had nearly fallen hundreds of feet down the side of a cliff near the lighthouse.

"It seems that he had been clinging on for dear life to rocks until he was rescued. What an amazing outcome. He must have been totally exhausted by his ordeal. We are just relieved it had such a happy ending."

She added: "This is such a rare event - because it is such an amazing area it attracts hundreds of walkers and I have not heard of this sort of thing ever happening before."

The area where the rescue took place is a popular site for walkers and bird watching enthusiasts.

It is a National Nature Reserve which is home to thousands of guillemots, kittiwakes, razorbills, shags, fulmars, puffins and herring gulls nesting on narrow ledges from April to August.

The area is described by The National Trust for Scotland as being a landmark site for birdwatchers with "spectacular clifftop walks".z