Emergency crews respond to woman who fell down cliff at Peninsula State Park

FISH CREEK, Wis. (WBAY) - A 32-year-old woman fell down a cliff at Peninsula State Park Saturday evening.

Gibraltar Fire Chief Andy Burtges said, “She was on top of eagle bluff and fell... I would suspect between 40 and 50 feet...”

First responders arrived around 5:30 p.m. They found the woman near Eagle Tower, halfway up the bluff on a shelf of land.

The challenging situation forced crews to switch gears from normal operations into a technical rescue as they treated her for head, neck and back trauma.

Officials say the woman was located on rough and unstable ground, on top of that, the loss of daylight made the rescue even more difficult.

“The issue that we have is that it’s just very hard to negotiate the terrain. It’s loose rock--it’s all full of scrub,” Chief Burtges continued.

The rescue marks the first time in four years that Gibraltar Fire & Rescue had to use a rope system to bring someone to safety.

Crews lowered her onto a boat. The boat took her to an ambulance, which drove her to a nearby airport.

Then, a helicopter flew her to a hospital for further treatment.

Chief Burtges said the woman is expected to be okay.

He has a message for anyone taking to the great outdoors this fall.

“Just stay on the trails. The trails are there for a reason and going off trail and going to the edge... it may be pretty neat looking over the side but obviously there’s dangers to it.”

Over a dozen mutual aid partners assisted at the scene:

Ephraim Firefighters Association, Baileys Harbor Fire and Rescue, Egg Harbor Fire Department, Sister Bay/Liberty Grove Fire Dept, Jacksonport Fire Dept, Sturgeon Bay Professional Firefighters IAFF Local 2682, Southern Door Fire Department, B.U.G. Fire Department, Door County EMS, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources, Door County Sheriff’s Office and ThedaStar.

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