Helicopter airlift after walker breaks hip near Porthmeor Cove

A fall on the coast path near Porthmeor Cove ended with a coastguard helicopter winching a walker to safety on Tuesday, after the terrain proved too difficult for a ground carry.

What happened

Penzance Coastguard Rescue Team was tasked at 2.05pm alongside St Ives Coastguard Rescue Team and South Western Ambulance Service, following reports of a woman who had fallen on the coast path in the Porthmeor Cove area. She was thought to have suffered a hip injury and was unable to walk.

Once the teams located her, they carried out casualty assessments and worked to keep her comfortable while the ambulance crew made their way to the scene. The location and the ground around it were a problem. With a stretcher carry ruled out as too risky, the teams decided an air extraction was the safest way to get her off the path, and Rescue Helicopter 924 was called in.

Landing site and airlift

Some team members stayed with the casualty while the rest set up a helicopter landing site close to the waiting ambulance. After a successful extraction, the woman was moved from the helicopter into the ambulance and taken on for further treatment.

Once Rescue 924 had safely departed, both coastguard teams packed away their equipment and returned to their stations.

The coast path was closed for a short time so the helicopter could operate safely. In their post, the Penzance team thanked members of the public for their patience while it was shut, and wished the casualty a speedy recovery.