A man who said he tumbled down a steep embankment into Cross Creek almost two days ago was rescued Monday, authorities said.
The 56-year-old man was not identified in a release from the Fayetteville Fire Department.
It was about 12:30 p.m. when a woman reported hearing a man yelling for help across the creek, said Battalion Chief Nixon Spell.
The man was found off the Laurel Loop Trail at the Cape Fear Botanical Garden at 536 Eastern Blvd. at the bottom of a 120-foot embankment, about 200 feet from the point where Cross Creek flows into the Cape Fear River, Spell said.
The man had fallen down the embankment and injured himself, leaving him unable to walk and get help.
"Reportedly, he had been in the area of the creek for nearly 48 hours before someone heard his yells for help," Spell said.
Firefighters made their way down the embankment to assist the man, Spell said, before he was lifted in a Stokes basket, a device used in similar rescue situations. It took about 50 minutes to get the man to safety.
The man was taken to Cape Fear Valley Medical Center, but his condition was not known.
Copyright 2012 - The Fayetteville Observer, N.C.
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
