A woman has been rescued after spending seven long hours wedged upside down in a crack between two boulders after she got stuck trying to retrieve her phone in Australia’s Hunter Valley.
Earlier this month, a woman slipped into a 3-meter gap between two boulders but ended up hanging upside down on her feet and unable to get out, the New South Wales Ambulance Service said in a news release. The Hunter Valley is located north of Sydney in New South Wales.
The woman required a complicated rescue operation to free her from a small gap between two boulders.NSW Ambulance on Facebook
Friends tried unsuccessfully to free her, and after she hung upside down for over an hour, friends called Triple Zero, Australia’s emergency number.
The release said NSW Ambulance deployed a team to remove heavy boulders to create a “safe access point”.
“A hardwood frame was carefully constructed to provide stability for rescuers,” the service said. “The team faced the challenge of getting the patient through a tight S-curve within an hour. Teamwork and a specialized Tirfor winch were needed to move the huge 500 kg (1,100 lb) boulder.
NSW Ambulance shared photos showing the woman’s bare feet sticking out between a small crack in the boulders, with rescuers clearing giant rocks to reach her.
New South Wales ambulance specialist Peter Watts said in his 10 years as a paramedic: “I have never experienced work like this. It was demanding but extremely rewarding.”
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported that the woman was 23-year-old Matylda Campbell and reported that despite the difficult experience, she remained calm and cooperative.
“She was a great soldier,” Watts told the outlet. “I would have been unconscious being stuck in that situation, but once we were there she was calm, composed and whatever we asked her to do, she was able to do to help us get her out.”
In Australia, a woman was rescued after being pressed upside down between boulders for seven hours.NSW Ambulance on Facebook
In total, crews had to remove seven boulders weighing between 80 and 500 kilograms, according to the outlet.
The woman was finally safely freed after seven hours of imprisonment – with only minor scratches and bruises.
Ultimately, however, she failed to recover her phone.
This story first appeared NBCNews.com.
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