SYFR’s Technical Rescue Unit (TRU) came to the aid of a Rotherham woman on Tuesday evening after she fell 20 feet down a banking in woods.

The 47 year-old was walking in Listerdale Woods when she tripped and rolled down a steep bank, hitting her head on the way.

A local resident alerted the fire service after hearing her cries for help.

Firefighters from the Rotherham-based TRU used specialist equipment to winch the woman back up the banking on a long board, before she was taken to hospital.

Crew Manager Darren Perrott from the TRU said: “The crew have done a lot of training on rope rescues which we were able to put to good use at this incident. There was no way the lady could have walked back up the banking so we used our haul line and a SKED stretcher to bring her back up the banking. She was a little shaken by the ordeal but able to walk once we brought her to safety.”

Steelworker Saved by Specialist Rescue Team

A man working at the Aldwarke steelworks site in Rotherham had a lucky escape in the early hours of this morning, thanks to South Yorkshire Fire & Rescue's Technical Rescue Unit.

The Service was alerted to the incident at 3:38am after a 54 year old man was reported to have slipped on the metal structure beneath the cooling bed, on which he was working at the time.

Two fire enginges from Rotherham Fire Station attended the scene, along with the Operational Support Unit and the Technical Rescue Unit from Rotherham.

They arrived to find the man trapped underneath the cooling bed and suffering from leg injuries.  They carefully removed him using specialist lifting equipment and he was taken to hospital via ambulance.

The man's injuries are not believed to be life-threatening and crews left the scene at 4:33am.

Man Rescued from Flat in Mexborough

A man has been rescued from his flat after a neighbouring property caught fire in the early hours of this morning.

Crews were called to the scene on Highwoods Crescent in Mexborough at 2:10am.  The two engines from Mexborough and Brampton Fire Stations arrived to find a flat on the middle floor of a three-storey block well alight.

Four firefighters wearing breathing apparatus entered the building and evacuated four people from neighbouring flats.  In one of the flats a 34 year old man was in bed and had been overcome by smoke.  He was rescued by firefighters and given oxygen at the scene, although he did not attend hospital.  Luckily, no-one was inside the flat involved in the blaze.

The fire is believed to have been started deliberately and Fire Investigation Officers will be working with police to identify the cause of the blaze.