Barra lifeboat crew aided a rock climber who became injured while scaling cliffs on the uninhabited island of Pabbay, south of Barra.
A local fishing boat working in the vicinity relayed the incident to Stornoway Coastguards around 3.15pm yesterday (Friday) and the lifeboat arrived from Castlebay.
Weather conditions at the time were good with sun and calm seas.
Approaching the scene, the fishing vessel provided co-ordination to the crew assisting the lifeboat to the exact location.
The casualty who had sustained a shoulder injury had been assisted by fellow climbers who lowered him to sea level and onto a ridge.
The lifeboat’s small inflatable boat was launched with two crew members to edge in to the cliff face and access the casualty.
He was subsequently transferred to the coastguard helicopter and airlifted to the mainland for medical assistance.
Eoin MacNeil, Barra Island RNLI volunteer lifeboat press officer said: ‘Due to the location of the rock and where the casualty was, the best thing to do in this situation was to launch our smaller inflatable boat on scene to bring him onboard and then safely transfer him to the all-weather lifeboat.
“We would like to wish the casualty a speedy recovery and commend his fellow climbers who went to his aid initially.
“We thank our colleagues in the coastguard and the crew of the local fishing vessel who also assisted.’
Injured rock climber rescued
10 June 2023