Three Conn. Firefighters Injured During Rescue
Source New Haven Register, Conn.
The woman ultimately was brought down safely and didn't appear to be injured.
But in trying to reach her, fire Lt. Jay Schwartz, whose crew was ascending a steep incline, fell 70 feet or more back down the rock after he attempted to reach the woman, who said she couldn't hold on any longer.
A fire captain at the scene said Schwartz suffered a severe compound fracture to his ankle and was in shock. Two other firefighters also were hospitalized, one after he was hit in the back by a falling rock and the other as a precaution. The latter had rapelled down the sheer face and had been hanging on the rope for about 45 minutes after the operation quickly shifted gears following Schwartz's injury.
Schwartz was the first to come down in a Stokes basket surrounded by colleagues. Firefighters then turned their attention back to the climber.
It is illegal to rock climb at East Rock, which is treacherous.
Asked if the woman would face charges, Fire Chief Michael Grant had a blunt answer.
"I certainly hope so," he said.
A fire official in contact with police Thursday evening said police did charge the woman and her male companion, who was on the rock with her but managed to get down on his own, with reckless endangerment and violating the city's ordinance banning climbing on East Rock. Their names were not released.
It was unclear how the woman ended up in the predicament. Grant said he didn't yet know if she was rock climbing or a hiker that ended up in trouble.
The Fire Department got a call from the woman's male companion, saying she was stuck on the cliff face. Grant said the department stationed three fire companies at the top of the rock and two firefighters were lowered by rope to the woman. Two other companies, including Schwartz's, made their way up from the bottom.
They had nearly reached the woman, who was tiring.
Schwartz "made a final attempt to get her because she said she couldn't hold on any longer," a city official said.
He fell backward.
Grant said that's the type of firefighter Schwartz is: "the best of the best."
Colleagues described his ankle injury as severe and he underwent surgery Thursday evening.
"You can see the risk that this involves, not only to the climbers themselves but to the firefighters. And they put it on the line for her. They did a hell of a job," Grant said. "I've seen a lot of rescues and this is one of the best. It makes me proud to be the chief of this department."
Safely at the bottom, the woman and her male friend spoke to police and firefighters.
Approached by reporters, she said, "I really don't have anything to say, except for that the firefighters did a fantastic job."
After speaking to the media, Grant left to visit his friend at the hospital.
He offered advice for people who want to climb on East Rock: "Stay off the rocks. Stay off the rocks," he said. "You want to sightsee, stand at the bottom and look up."
McClatchy-Tribune News Service
