Firefighters rescue woman who fell from Rockcliffe Lookout
The Ottawa Fire Service's rope rescue team reached a woman on a rock face near the intersection of Promenade Sir-George-Etienne-Cartier and Lisgar Road at 1:45 a.m. on Wednesday.
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Firefighters rescued a woman who fell about six metres down a rock face at Rockcliffe Lookout early Wednesday morning, June 24.
The Ottawa Fire Service's rope rescue team arrived at 1:45 a.m. after crews were called to the lookout near the intersection of Promenade Sir-George-Etienne-Cartier and Lisgar Road. When they assessed the scene, one crew member and a tactical paramedic found they could access the woman from the Ottawa River shoreline around the lookout.
The woman was conscious when rescuers reached her. Firefighters brought a Stokes basket with a wheel at the bottom, allowing them to quickly move her from the rock face up to the roadway where an ambulance waited. She sustained non-life-threatening injuries and was taken to hospital in serious but stable condition. The operation ended at 2:31 a.m.
According to Ottawa fire's public information officer Nick DeFazio, the rope rescue team is strategically placed across the city at three fire stations — one east, one west, and one central — and is always training for these types of incidents. The team responds year-round to rescues from trenches, ice, water, and cliffs.
A similar rescue was needed in September 2024 when a man became stuck on a cliff near the Alexandra Bridge while trying to climb toward a statue. Firefighters lowered a rescuer by rope to secure him in a harness before bringing him to safety.