Local high-angle rescue teams used ropes and a helicopter to pull an injured hiker to safety from the bottom of Tallulah Gorge Monday.
The four-hour-long rescue operation began around 11:38 a.m. after a 911 caller reported a person fell and was down at the rock base of the gorge with possible broken bones.
Habersham County 911 dispatched multiple agencies to the scene, including Habersham Search and Rescue, EMS, county, Lee Arrendale, and Tallulah Falls firefighters. The Rabun County SAR team also responded.
According to Habersham County Emergency Services Director Chad Black, rescuers reached the patient around 12:05 p.m. He says she suffered an “obvious fracture to a lower extremity.”
Due to the heat and location, Black says a helicopter was called to help lift the patient from the bottom of the gorge to the top of the rim. GSP Aviation assisted with the call.
Shortly after 3 p.m., rescuers transported the patient from the helicopter to a waiting ambulance. Habersham EMS transported her to Habersham County Medical Center for treatment.
Officials have not released any other information about the victim. It’s unclear how far she fell and what caused her to fall.
Black praised the emergency response, saying it was “Another long and lengthy wilderness rescue call for our joint teams, who do exceptional work in dealing with these types of calls.”
This article has been updated to reflect that it was GSP Aviation that assisted with the rescue, not DNR as officials previously reported
