Major update after man falls from ledge

Ilford High Road Rescue: A ‘Complete Stranger’ Steps In

On Tuesday afternoon, a three-year-old girl was saved after dangling from a window ledge above a pawnbroker’s shop on Ilford High Road in east London. The child had been suspended for at least nine minutes before she was brought to safety by a police officer and a civilian who rushed out of his home to save her.

Mohamed Jesil, a restaurant manager and father-of-two, described how the little girl gave him a “big hug” after he ran across rooftops to assist. Footage posted on social media showed bystanders screaming “Hurry up” as a woman appeared from a window below, calling and reaching out to the child. The youngster desperately tried to pull herself up as a police officer on a ledge below appeared to look helplessly at the girl. Jesil then joined the rescue efforts just as the girl’s grip began to fail, while a passerby below carried a step ladder. Jesil caught the girl as she fell, with the officer steadying them both.

Jesil told Metro: “I ran out on instinct. I’m a dad of twins aged five months, and as a dad I just reacted. I wasn’t scared, I just didn’t think. I’m not a hero, I just did it as a dad seeing a child in trouble. There was massive relief when I managed to catch her; she didn’t say anything, just gave me a big hug. I’m so happy it could help.” Jesil added that his experience playing cricket in India helped him with his catching, noting, “I just knew I had to concentrate.”

Fatal Rock Ledge Collapse in Karijini National Park

In one incident, a man died and a woman received minor injuries after a rock ledge the man was sitting on at Hancock Gorge in Karijini National Park collapsed. The pair were part of a group of about six people who had been swimming at the gorge.

Police said the man is thought to have climbed up a 7m rock face to sit on the ledge. It collapsed a short time later, sending the man plummeting to the ground, where he died from his injuries. A woman who was close to the debris from the collapse received minor injuries. In a second incident, a woman received head injuries in a fall at Hamersley Gorge, also in the Karijini National Park. Details of that incident and the extent of the woman’s injuries remain unclear. State Emergency Service crews from Newman and Tom Price were called to assist at both emergencies.

Climbing Fatality on Colorado’s The Citadel

Additional details have been released related to a New Year’s Eve mountain climbing accident that resulted in the death of 52-year-old Shafiq Noorani of Aurora, Colorado. According to a January 7 update from the Alpine Rescue Team, Noorani fell more than 500 feet from the northeast face of The Citadel on December 31. The Citadel is a rugged 13,294-foot mountain located a couple miles east-northeast of I-70’s Eisenhower-Johnson Memorial Tunnel.

Noorani was with a 29-year-old female during the fall, with the two aiming to reach the summit of the peak. “A couple of experienced climbers, tiring from post holing in snow moved to ever-steepening rock to seek a clear route to the summit,” the Alpine Rescue Team stated. “Not far from the top, one of the scramblers suffered a long and very serious fall. Unable to see the climber and hearing no responses to yells, the partner called 911 and hunkered down on a small 4’x4’ ledge.”

The initial call for help came in at about 2:05 p.m. A Flight for Life helicopter picked up a member of the Alpine Rescue Team for reconnaissance, but “swirling winds” prevented a landing. Personnel were subsequently launched on the ground to hike into the area. Because daylight was waning, assistance was requested from the Summit County Rescue Group, Grand County Search and Rescue, and the Colorado Army National Guard.

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