UBC student survives 30-metre drop down sheer cliff face on endowment lands
19-year-old was rescued by RCMP and firefighters after becoming disoriented in dark
A 19-year-old UBC student had a lucky escape Saturday night, emerging uninjured from a 30-metre fall down a sheer cliff face in the University Endowment Lands in Vancouver.
"It is amazing," said UBC RCMP Sgt. Drew Grainger, who hiked 40 minutes down Trail 7 to find the trapped hiker after he called 911 for help at around 6:30 p.m. PT.
"Thank goodness the ground was quite soft and he fell in an area which albeit was very heavily wooded, there was a lot of branches that made his landing a little softer."
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Grainger said the young man, whose name was not released by police, had become disoriented in the dark, somewhere between the area of Monument and Trail 7 and fell down the embankment on an unmarked, illegal trail.
RCMP officers activated the fire service's high angle search and rescue team, which eventually managed to extricate the man at around 10:30 p.m.
Grainger said the young man was slightly hypothermic when he found him, but after giving him first aid, he was relieved to see him walk away from the scene unharmed.
Grainger warns against anybody hiking in the area, saying the trails are illegal for a reason.
"It's extremely hazardous. We're in the spring season right now. The trails are very wet. They're very muddy. We have some landslides in the area.
"This is a very dangerous area to be in. We highly advise against anybody hiking in that area, at any time."