Injured climber taken to hospital after 50-foot fall at Bullers of Buchan

An injured climber has been taken to hospital after a 50-foot fall resulted in a multi-agency rescue operation.

Aberdeen Coastguard requested Peterhead RNLI launch to the aid and extract of the injured climber near the Bullers of Buchan last night.

Volunteers arrived on the scene just south of the Bullers of Buchan at 9:40pm, however, weather conditions made spotting the exact location difficult, with thick fog in the area and visibility of less than 100m.

The RNLI managed to guide the lifeboat close to the cliff before deploying the two crew members with a stretcher and medical supplies.

The rescue took place in poor weather conditions.

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Crew Member Craig Aird said: "We launched to assist a stricken climber who had fallen close to the Bullers of Buchan; although we had coordinates for the scene, the fog made spotting the exact location difficult.

"Arriving on-scene, the paramedics had begun treating the casualty.

"Given the location, it was decided that the safest route for extraction was direct to the lifeboat rather than passing down the cliff to the Y boat.”

Duty Coxswain Patrick Davidson said: "When the initial call came in, we knew how serious this was and attempted to make the best speed, but due to significantly reduced visibility, I had to think about the safety of my crew as well as the casualty.

"As a result of the local visibility and thunder and lightning storms in the area, an air evacuation was not possible.

"With potential spinal injuries the quickest and safest extraction was assessed to be by sea.

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"On scene, sea conditions were favourable, but due to a small swell using our small daughter craft ( Y boat) was assessed to be too risky.

"So I decided to attempt and get the Lifeboat into a small gully so casualty and paramedics could be transferred from the cliff base directly onto the lifeboat, which we executed along with local Coastguard teams and assisted by my crew members illuminating the rocks around the lifeboat.

"The casualty was then transferred by lifeboat to Peterhead Harbour, where we were met by the Scottish Ambulance Service and Local Coast Guard Teams.

"They transferred the casualty to Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. It was a fantastic multi-agency response and great to see how we all worked together seamlessly. We would all like to wish the casualty a speedy recovery."

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