January 26, 2017
Northern Ireland

Fall sparks rescue response at Killeter wind turbine

Strabane Chronicle | January 25, 2017 | strabanechronicle.com

A man in his 30s is recovering in hospital after falling inside a 63 metre wind turbine in Co Tyrone.

The man, understood to be an engineer, suffered back injuries after falling near the top of the structure at Killeter, near Castlederg.

The incident attracted a major rescue operation, involving police, paramedics and crews from the Fire and Rescue Service.

David Doherty, the Fire and Rescue Service’s district commander in Omagh, said the response included two appliances from Castlederg, a rescue appliance from Omagh, a line rescue team from Derry and a specialist rescue team from Belfast.

He said that the injured man and a colleague had managed to use a lift to descend most of the way to the bottom. But confirmed that the rescue teams were required to bring the injured male down from 10-15 feet to the waiting paramedics.

The injuries suffered by the man were not life threatening, but he was conveyed to the South West Acute Hospital in Enniskillen with back injuries.

The District Commander said that his crews were already familiar with the inside of the turbine, having carried out a number of training exercises in preparation for such scenarios.

URL to article:  https://www.wind-watch.org/news/2017/01/26/fall-sparks-rescue-response-at-killeter-wind-turbine/