OLIVER SPRINGS, Tenn. -- Members of four emergency response agencies teamed up to rescue an injured hiker Monday, using ropes and a special basket to lower her down a 40-foot cliff and then transporting her across a creek on an all-terrain vehicle.
Holly Green, 26, of the Oliver Springs area tripped while hiking on a ridgetop in the foothills of Windrock Mountain and sustained an apparent sprained knee, said Oliver Springs Fire Department Capt. Jordan Alcorn.
The incident occurred in a wooded area off-trail and was more than a mile from any access point, Oak Ridge Fire Chief Darryl Kerley said.
Kerley said the "path of least resistance" in a rescue effort was to lower the injured woman down the cliff face using high-angle rope gear provided by the fire department in a mutual aid request.
The woman was placed in a Stokes basket, lowered down the rock wall, carried by ATV across the creek and then taken by ambulance to Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge, said Alcorn, who also is an Oak Ridge firefighter.
Members of the Oliver Springs, Oak Ridge and Marlow fire departments and Anderson County Emergency Medical Services personnel participated in the effort, Alcorn said.
