| Calvert County is well known for the massive cliffs, over 100' in height that dominate the shoreline of the Chesapeake Bay for roughly 24 miles. These cliffs were formed over 10 to 20 million years ago when all of Southern Maryland was covered by a warm, shallow sea. When the sea receded, the cliffs were exposed and began eroding. Today these cliffs reveal the remains of prehistoric species including sharks, whales, rays, and seabirds that were the size of small airplanes. Residents will tell you to never, under any circumstances, climb on the cliffs. They are unstable and prone to collapse.
Firefighters put their technical rescue training to work on Sunday October 5, 2014, rescuing a man that had become stuck on the side of the cliff, in an area where the cliffs exceed 100' in height. At 1703 hours, the High Angle Rescue Assignment was sounded at 5109 Larchmont Drive in Chesapeake Beach. In addition to the North Beach VFD & Dunkirk VFD, the Huntingtown VFD Assistant Chief (Morris), Rescue Lieutenant (Ward) & Sergeant (Miller) responded to the scene. Rescuers found an uninjured conscious male that had become stuck on the side of the cliffs after setting up a home-made paracord system in an attempt to retrieve a model airplane that he had crashed. A high angle hauling system was set up to lower one rescuer down the cliff to the patient. After approximately 90 minutes from arrival, the patient was rescued and brought to safe ground. Two hours later, all units returned to service and the patient refused medical treatment & transport.
All pictures courtesy of Huntingtown VFD member, Dennis Hook: www.DennisHook.smugmug.com |
