A young man has been airlifted to hospital after he was injured in a fall at the Cliffs of Moher in North Clare this morning.
A search and rescue operation was mounted shortly after 9.30am following reports that a man had fallen at the base of Aill Na Searrach.
The man had made his way down a goat trail at Aill Na Searrach when the accident happened. The track, often used by surfers, requires local knowledge and extreme caution if anyone is to attempt it.
The Doolin unit of the Irish Coast Guard was alerted and requested to mobilise to the scene. The National Ambulance Service dispatched an ambulance and response vehicle to the incident while the Shannon based Coast Guard helicopter was tasked. Gardaí also attended the incident.
A Coast Guard shore team, specially trained to negotiate the trail, was prepared to make their way down to reach the man. However, the crew of Rescue 115 managed to manoeuvre their helicopter close enough to the scene to deploy a winchman/paramedic.
The casualty was successfully winched on board the helicopter and airlifted to University Hospital Limerick for treatment. His injuries are not believed to be serious.
The operation was coordinated by watch officers at the Irish Coast Guard’s marine rescue coordination centre on Valentia Island in Co Kerry.
