A woman in Australia’s Hunter Valley was trapped upside down between two large boulders for seven hours after attempting to retrieve her dropped phone.
The incident took place on October 12 in Laguna, a rural town located about 120 kilometers (75 miles) from Sydney.
The woman, 23, was hiking with friends on private property when her phone slipped between two boulders. While trying to retrieve it, she accidentally slipped head-first into a 3-meter (10-foot) crevice, leaving only the soles of her feet visible. Her friends spent an hour attempting to free her before calling for help.
Emergency services, including police, paramedics, fire crews, and volunteer rescuers, were dispatched around 9:30am., according to a statement from New South Wales (NSW) Police.
For the next seven hours, rescuers worked meticulously to free the woman. Several heavy boulders had to be removed to create a safe access point, and rescuers constructed a frame to safely navigate the narrow space. NSW Ambulance, in a Facebook post, described the challenge as manoeuvring her through a tight “S” bend.
A 500-kilogram (1,100-pound) boulder was eventually shifted using a winch, and the woman was finally freed around 4:30 p.m. Miraculously, she sustained only minor scratches and bruising.
Peter Watts, an NSW Ambulance specialist rescue paramedic, praised the teamwork involved in the complex operation. “In my 10 years as a rescue paramedic, I had never encountered a job quite like this. It was challenging but incredibly rewarding,” Watts said. “Every agency had a role, and we all worked incredibly well together to achieve a good outcome for the patient.”
The woman, whose identity was not disclosed, was transported to the hospital for observation. While she was safely rescued, her phone remained trapped between the rocks.
Photos of the incident, showing the woman’s feet wedged between the boulders, were shared on social media by the NSW Ambulance Service, highlighting the delicate nature of the rescue.
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