A man and woman were rescued Friday evening after somehow falling into the Cottonwood Falls ravine in Nelson.
Nelson Fire Rescue says it got the call shortly after 8 p.m. and arrived to find the pair about 15 meters below the road. The woman appeared badly hurt.
“The only way to access the couple was to rappel into the ravine on ropes and then remove the two patients one at a time,” Assistant Fire Chief Michael Daloise said in a news release.
Two firefighters made their way into the creek bed. The woman was packaged into a spine board and basket stretcher and removed using the ladder truck. She was taken to Kootenay Lake Hospital with serious injuries.
The man was removed using a harness instead of the stretcher as his injuries appeared much more minor.
“As challenging as the location was to access, rescue crews were fortunate that the water levels were as low as they are at this time of year,” Daloise said. “Increased water flow would have increased the complexity of the rescue and required additional resources.”
It’s unknown what caused the couple to fall in. The Nelson Police Department is investigation.
The rescue operation also involved the BC Ambulance Service, RCMP, hospital emergency room staff, and City of Nelson public works. No responders were injured.