BRUCETON MILLS — Preston volunteer firefighters rescued a man who had fallen over a waterfall near the Rockville Mount Nebo bridge Wednesday.
Justin Wolfe, assistant director of Preston County Emergency Management/911, said a call came in at 4 p.m. reporting a man had fallen over a waterfall near the Rockwell Mount Nebo bridge.
Wolfe said he didn’t know if the man was a local resident or from out of town.
Matt Montgomery, chief of the Masontown Volunteer Fire Department (MVFD), said when the individual went over the waterfall he struck the rocks below.
“My team and our equipment had to be hauled in on a side by side,” he said. “Me and Lt. Charles Curtis went in first with the equipment.”
Montgomery said while he set up the haul system Curtis, a firefighter and EMT, went down over the falls.
He said the accident victim was brought back up over the falls in a stokes basket, which is a form of litter that can be used to bring patients up hillsides.
Bruceton-Brandonville Volunteer Firefighter Jonathan Thorne said that the falls is 20 to 25 feet tall.
Reedsville Volunteer Fire Department Chief Scott Spiker said when his team arrived at the scene they found a man at the bottom of the falls. He said circumstances required a vertical rescue.
“We were lucky HealthNet was able to land on the rocks in the river,” he said about transport. “Otherwise it would have taken a hour to get him out to the main road.”
Spiker said to reach the scene, both the Reedsville Volunteer Fire Department dive team and the MVFD fast water rescue team had to go through Sabraton to reach the site of the accident.
Montgomery agreed. He said the detour made it more difficult for his team to get to the scene.
“We went to Sabraton, to the Coopers Rock exit then to Pisgah Road. It made it more difficult to get to the scene,” he said. “Basically my team had to be hauled in with side-by-sides.”
The delay was caused by the recent closure of the Rockville Mount Nebo bridge by the West Virginia Division of Highways.
In a recent email, Jennifer Jo Dooley, West Virginia Department of Transportation Information Corps Manager, said a bridge inspection discovered deficiencies that made it unsafe for travel over the bridge.
“We are currently evaluating the repairs needed to ensure its safety and will determine if the work is feasible after the study is complete,” she said.
Thorne said the access road to the bridge is also closed.
Wolfe said Bruceton – Brandonville Volunteer Fire Department, Masontown Volunteer Fire Department, Reedsville Volunteer Fire Department, HealthNet, KAMP Ambulance and Bruceton Ambulance were on the scene.
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