Man recovering after 40 foot fall off cliff near Kentucky nature preserve

ESTILL COUNTY, Ky. (FOX 56) — Rescue crews said the nearly six-hour rescue started around noon Wednesday, after they got the call that a surveyor had fallen about 40 feet down a cliff near Lily Mountain Nature Preserve.

The steep terrain and remote location made the rescue challenging. Rescuers said they moved three times to locate the man.

“It’s a whole lot like the Red River Gorge, a lot of cliffs, a lot of mountains, it’s really hard getting around up there,” said Estill County Rescue Squad Chief Tommy Lane.

Lane said the man was with at least two others when he lost his footing. First responders made contact with him and confirmed he was alert and suffered a fractured femur.

“We had a local guy who hunts the mountain and actually guided us up there to get us close,” Hargett Fire and Rescue Chief Robert Forehand.

Crews used a 3:1 rope system to pull the man out. Even though he fell 40 feet, rescuers had to rappel more than 100 feet just to reach him.

After the mission was completed, the group of more than 20 rescuers from several squads gathered together to talk about what went well and what could have been better.

“We got to work together, we got to pull together, and at the end of the day, what do you get? You get a successful rescue mission,” Lane said.

The man received brief medical attention after being pulled from the woods.

Officials said he would be taken to the University of Kentucky Hospital.