Helicopter rescues injured hiker who jumped from cliff into Virginia river (2024)

New details are being released about a state police helicopter crew that pulled off a complex rescue on Saturday afternoon, lifting an injured 20-year-old woman out of a western Virginia riverway.

The helicopter crew was called to Augusta County on Saturday evening after the woman jumped from a cliff on the Saint Mary’s Falls Trail into the Saint Mary’s River, which runs alongside the trail.

Helicopter rescues injured hiker who jumped from cliff into Virginia river (1)

Hovering about 175 feet over the water, the helicopter crew lowered a rescuer by cable, then secured her in a rescue basket and pulled her up into the helicopter. A video released by the Virginia State Police shows the rescuer and gurney spinning through the air as they ascend above the treeline.

The hiker, who police say sustained serious back injuries, has not been named. She was taken by medevac to UVA Medical Center.

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Helicopter rescues injured hiker who jumped from cliff into Virginia river (2)

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The crew was primarily composed of Chesterfield County Fire and EMS flight paramedics, who accompanied a state police pilot.

State police said the same helicopter crew made two other rescues that day before flying to Augusta County.

The helicopter’s first stop was in Amelia County, where it responded to a farm machinery entrapment. Its second stop was in south Chesterfield, where the helicopter was called to “an ATV incident involving a child.”

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Luca Powell

Investigations and Criminal Justice Reporter

Helicopter rescues injured hiker who jumped from cliff into Virginia river (2024)

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