35-year-old man falls from Magherafelt rooftop sparking huge rescue operation
It is understood the 35-year-old maintenance man was cleaning windows on the roof of a private residence on the Castledawson Road when he fell on to a flat roof below.
Firefighters from Magherafelt, Ballymena and Belfast rushed to the scene along with paramedics from Northern Ireland Ambulance Service.
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Hide AdColin Dickson, Assistant Area Commander for the Northern Ireland Fire & Service, told the Mail: “Late on Tuesday afternoon a gent fell from a roof in Magherafelt. He was on the top of the building... he fell four metres on to a flat roof.
“He was significantly injured and we were called to rescue him.”
It is unclear whether the man was unconscious as a result of his fall, but Colin said paramedics decided that he would need to be removed on a stretcher.
And as a result, NIFRS called for support from the Specialist Rescue Team, who brought a vema (crane) with them.
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Hide AdCommending the cohesion between paramedics and fire crews, Colin added: “He was removed on a basket stretcher with the crane and then taken to hospital. Northern Ireland Ambulance Service was assisting the whole time.”
Asked whether the rescue was a difficult, he added: “Yes. It was difficult access. The house had court yards and trees and it took quite a while.”
A message on NIFRS’s Facebook page said: “Specialist Rescue Team were deployed to Magherafelt to assist NIFRS North along with Hazardous Awareness Response Team from NI Ambulance Service to rescue a male casualty from a flat roof.
“Great example of partnership working. #notjustfires”