Tyne and Wear’s Urban Search and Rescue (USAR) team recovered a fisherman on 6 January after the cliff face he was standing on collapsed due to the extreme weather conditions.
The man was fishing from the cliff top at Sandy Bay, near Newbiggin, when he fell about 50ft (15 metres) to the shore below and was buried under hundreds of tonnes of sandstone and rocks from the cliff face. The man unfortunately died from his injuries.
The team were deployed at approx 19:00hrs on Wednesday night but due to the bad weather and tide it was deemed too dangerous to carry out the recovery of the body of the trapped man.
The team returned at 11:00 hours the next day after high tide to carryout the recovery, although the temperature was still below zero the weather had improved along with the visibility.
The team used a range of USAR vehicles to take the specialist equipment needed to carryout the rescue.
Tyne and Wear’s rope rescue team from South Tyneside East Community Fire Station were used to support the USAR team by providing access to the bottom of the cliff and lowering the specialist equipment. They also provided safe egress in case of further collapse or injury.
The recovery took approx 5 hours of hard physical work by the USAR team as they were racing against the tide, daylight and the weather. The body of the man was finally recovered at approximately 16:00hrs.
Group Manager Trevor Tague at Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service said:
"The USAR and Rope Rescue team showed exceptional professionalism in working with the coastguard, Northumbria Police and Ambulance Service in extremely arduous conditions during this operation."
"Please check the weather forecast and tides before heading to the cliffs and wear appropriate clothing, keep to the marked pathway, stay away from the cliff edge and follow advisory signs. Any slip or trip could be fatal."
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