A hiker who sustained serious injuries during a fall in mountainous terrain will today reunite with the emergency crews who helped winch him to safety.
The man was hiking across a 1500m mountain with five others in the Cathedral Range State Park when he slipped and fell approximately six metres about 2pm on Saturday 22 February.
He sustained serious injuries to his back and wrist and was unable to walk.
His friends alerted emergency services and volunteers from the State Emergency Service's high angle team were first on scene to assist.
An Ambulance Victoria flight paramedic was also winched down shortly after and provided immediate medical assistance to the man while emergency services crews worked out how to extract him from the mountain.
It was deemed too dangerous to winch the 43-year-old man from the accident location due to the rough terrain and surrounding trees, and also near impossible to carry him out on a stretcher.
Three members from the Victoria Police Search and Rescue Squad - which specialises in complex vertical rescues - were then called upon & flown to the site. They set up a multi-directional roping system to safely move the man in three separate stages.
It was highly technical rescue with State Emergency Services, Country Fire Authority and Ambulance Victoria members providing vital assistance to ensure the man was kept stable while being moved in the stretcher.
It took several hours of teamwork to safely move the man up to a location that was more suitable for air extraction.
The Point Cook man was winched to safety by the Victoria Police Airwing about 8pm.
He was then transported by Ambulance Victoria to a Melbourne hospital where he was treated for several weeks.
Following the successful rescue, the 20-plus team of emergency services hiked two hours to reach the bottom of the mountain.
Quotes attributable to Leading Senior Constable Steve Ellis, Search and Rescue Squad:
"This man is incredibly lucky to have survived such a fall.
"Thankfully, we had highly experienced emergency services close by to assist him and put him in the best position possible for us to be able to get him out.
"It is extremely gratifying to help someone in their hour of need and see them return to good health."
Quotes attributable to Acting Inspector Amber Rawson, Search and Rescue Squad:
"This job is a prime example of just how important it is for emergency services to be able to work together.
"We could not have achieved this result without the help from our volunteer agencies and paramedics who located the patient and kept him stable until police search and rescue crews arrived.
"This type of work - while complex and highly technical - is what our specialist squads train for.
"Their experience and skills are evident in jobs like this where every move counts."
