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HANG
GLIDER PILOT TRAPPED 60 FEET UP FOR THREE HOURS
A
hang glider pilot who crashed into a cliff at
Portwrinkle and became trapped in the wreckage has
been rescued by emergency services using a
helicopter and a policeman who scrambled 60 feet up
cliffs to free him.
Eyewitneses said the man, aged 40, failed to clear
the cliffs above the picturesque Cornish cove by
about three metres, at about 2.30pm on Saturday. The
male pilot remained strapped in the glider, about 60
feet up the cliff. If he had freed himself from the
restraints it is liekly he would have fallen to
rocks below.
A coastguard helicopter attended the scene but at
first the downdraft threatened to blow the hang
glider off. Coastguards tried to climb to the man
from both above and below, but were unable to reach
him.
A
member of the public also tried to climb up from
below, and failed. Eventually a Torpoint policeman
scrambled up to reach the man.
PC John Alford was able to cut the pilot free and
kick the hang glider down the cliff.
The coastguard helicopter then swung into action to
winch the men up, watched by crowds from the car
park opposite the scene.
The pilot was airlifted to Plymouth Airport and then
taken by ambulance to Derriford Hospital.
The rescue operation started with Brixham
Coastguard, who called in the Tamar Coastguard
Rescue Team, with Looe Coastguard Rescue Team as
backup, and a Royal Navy Rescue Helicopter 193 from
RNAS Culdrose.
Inspector Furneaux, the police force's duty Critical
Incident Manager for Cornwall said: "PC Alford
acted with great courage in the face of extreme
danger. He is to be commended for his bravery and
resourcefulness in extreme circumstances."
Nick Ferguson, duty watch manager for Brixham
coastguard said: "This was a difficult rescue
to effect due to the thick undergrowth and
inhospitable nature of the surrounding cliffs.
"All involved at the scene should be praised
for their efforts in such a demanding
situation."
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HANG
GLIDER PILOT PAYS TRIBUTE TO RESCUERS
A
hang glider pilot who crashed into a cliff in South
East Cornwall has paid tribute to the emergency
services and said: "I owe them my life",
writes Tristan Nichols.
Speaking exclusively to The Herald, Alec Birch said
he believed he was going to die in the accident,
which saw him hit the cliff face at Portwrinkle at
about 30mph.
During the horrific ordeal the 44-year-old meat
processor was suspended 60ft above the beach upside
down for 20 minutes before the emergency services
reached him.
The
incident sparked a major multi-agency rescue
operation, but it was the efforts of one Torpoint
policeman who climbed the cliff to help Alec, from
Roche in
Cornwall
,
which touched him the most.
Pc John Alford, who was on duty at the time, climbed
the cliff to rescue Alec after the downdraught from
the coastguard helicopter threatened to blow him off
the cliff.
"If it was not for Pc John Alford I'm sure I
would not be here today," Alec said.
"If he had not secured me and released the
glider I would have fallen to my death.
"I couldn't move, and there was no way I could
have got myself out of that situation.
"I owe him, and the rest of the emergency
services, my life."
The accident happened just 20 minutes into an annual
hang gliding competition hosted by the Kernow Hang
Gliding Club at Freathy on Saturday afternoon.
Alec was one of about 25 hang glider pilots taking
part in the event, which sees participants complete
a 'ridge run' between Freathy and Portwrinkle.
It was the 12th time he had competed in the
competition, known as 'Frostbite' and he was using a
13.6 sq m Solar Wings Scandal glider.
On the return leg to Freathy from Portwrinkle, Alec
said the wind dropped and switched direction,
creating a tail wind, which propelled him towards
the cliff.
"I was doing quite well until I got to
Portwrinkle," he added.
"The lift started to drop off and I began to
lose height. I soon found myself in a situation I
couldn't get out of and I piled into the cliff face.
"I realised I was too low to make it over the
cliffs, but there was nothing I could do.
"I tried for a beach landing, but the wind was
pushing me forward."
Alec described his next 20 minutes as
"horrific" and "frightening".
"I thought 'well, that's the end of me',"
he said. |
"In the impact I sustained severe bruising to
my right leg, bruising to my left leg, left foot,
shoulder and ribs, and I sprained my right foot.
"It was a miracle I survived, but there was
more to come.
"I was hanging upside down on some bushes and I
tried to free myself from the glider, but I fell
another 20ft down.
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"By
the time I stopped I was dangling upside down over
the edge suspended only by more bushes.
"I was so tangled up in the rigging wires there
was no way I was going anywhere. It was horrific
really and very frightening.
"It seemed like an age before anyone came
along, but I was sure glad to see John's face."
After the incident Pc Alford told The Herald he
acted on instinct.
"I was concerned about the downdraught and the
way the wind was getting behind the wing," he
said. I thought if I could get up there I could cut
the hang glider free. I didn't want to leave it and
then see it blow off and think: 'I should have done
something'."
Alec's wife, Ingrid, said she was stunned to hear
what had happened.
"It was quite a shock when the police came and
told me," said the 44-year-old visitor worker
for the Department for Work and Pensions.
"It's not every day you're told your husband is
hanging off a cliff edge, but they were absolutely
brilliant. We owe Pc Alford everything. He put
himself into an incredible situation to save Alec's
life."
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