Man breaks ankle on rocks (From The Northern Echo)

Man breaks ankle on rocks

5:56pm Thursday 23rd July 2009 in Search

LIFEBOAT crew were called to help a man who slipped and broke his ankle while walking on rocks near Redcar.

The man, in his mid-thirties, was walking with his 14 year-old son on rocks near the South Gare lighthouse, to the north of Redcar, when he slipped, sustaining a dislocated fracture of his ankle on Thursday lunchtime.

Ambulance crews called to the scene were able to reach the man and give him pain-relief gas, but the terrain prevented them from removing the man from scene.

The Coastguard requested the launch of the two Redcar lifeboats to assist, together with a Sea King helicopter from RAF Boulmer.

RNLI helmsman Tony Wild said: "When we got there the man was in a lot of pain. The paramedic was giving him gas to take the edge of the pain. I went ashore with crew member Tom McNamara and we immobilised the injury ready for when the helicopter arrived."

The man was winched into the Sea King helicopter and taken to James Cook University Hospital for treatment.