Seven-hour rescue operation Woman tries to rescue cell phone and gets stuck in crevice

A young woman from Australia's Hunter Valley was rescued from a crevice after seven hours. The 23-year-old got into the predicament while trying to rescue her cell phone.

A woman from Australia's Hunter Valley was stuck upside down between boulders for seven hours. She got into this predicament after trying to rescue her lost cell phone. The incident occurred earlier this month and ended with an elaborate rescue operation.

The woman (23) was walking with friends on a private property in Laguna, about 120 kilometers from Sydney, when she dropped her cell phone. While trying to reach it, she slipped headfirst into a three-meter deep crevice between two rocks. Her friends tried in vain for about an hour to free her. Finally, her friends alerted the rescue service.

The emergency call was received by NSW Ambulance at around 9.30 am on October 12. Rescue workers from the police, fire department and volunteers worked for the next seven hours to free the woman from her predicament. Heavy boulders had to be removed and scaffolding built around the rocks to alleviate the dangerous situation.

Rescue workers have never had a case like this before

"With both feet now accessible, the team faced the challenge of navigating the patient through a tight S-bend over the course of an hour," the NSW Ambulance reported on Facebook. A 500 kilogram boulder was moved using a winch to finally free the woman at around 4.30pm.

"In my 10 years as a paramedic I've never experienced a case like this, it was challenging but incredibly rewarding," said Peter Watts from NSW Ambulance. "Every paramedic had a role and we all worked incredibly well together to achieve a good outcome for the patient."

Miraculously, the woman suffered only minor scratches and bruises. Her cell phone, however, remained trapped between the rocks. She was taken to hospital for observation.