Block-and-tackle system aided in McConnell’s Mill rescue

July 21, 2009

By PATRICK E. LITOWITZ
plitowitz@ncnewsonline.com

A simple mechanism played a pivotal role in the rescue of a New Brighton man Sunday afternoon.

Slippery Rock Township firefighters employed a block-and-tackle system to retrieve an injured Lucas Oehling.

Oehling, 20, fell 35 to 40 feet at the McConnell’s Mill State Park’s Kildoo Waterfalls, located below Kennedy Road bridge. He was listed last night in fair condition at Presbyterian Hospital, Pittsburgh.

Chief Ranger Rick Carson said Oehling suffered a 5-inch head wound and complained of back pain. The New Brighton man was conscious during the rescue and able to move his hands and feet.

The incident occurred, Carson said, when Oehling and his girlfriend, who was not identified, wandered off one of the park’s marked trails around 2 p.m. to 2:30 p.m.

Wearing tennis shoes, Oehling edged his way to the waterfalls. He slid down the hill, over the falls and onto rocks, Carson said.

“He wasn’t doing anything out of the ordinary,” added Chief William Lunn, who heads the township’s volunteer fire department. “He lost his footing.

“He tried to catch himself.”

Carson said a volunteer search-and-rescue team, U.S. SARR Corps, was practicing nearby on Rim Road when members heard screams for help. The Beaver Falls-based group reached Oehling and alerted authorities.

Lunn’s unit then took the lead in the rescue. With McConnell’s Mill and Hell’s Hollow in its coverage area, the department specializes in rope and water rescues.

Getting to Oehling meant taking a different route than the one he followed.

“We had to do a lot of rigging to get to the location,” Lunn said. “We used a block-and-tackle system to bring him on over.”

The rescuers decided to follow a steep incline, covering 75 feet, to reach Oehling.

“You have to protect your people,” Lunn said in determining which path to take. “We have every bit of the same risk of getting injured.”

Firefighters from Portersville-Muddy Creek and Scott Township assisted, along with the volunteer rescue team.

“These different fire departments came together,” Lunn said. “They all meshed.”

As a precaution, authorities called in STAT MedEvac to fly Oehling to Presbyterian Hospital.
Portersville’s ambulance company and state police also assisted.

Carson said the incident reinforces two safety tips: Wear a good pair of hiking shoes and stay on marked trails.

“If people stay on the trail, they usually don’t get injured.”