BAKERSFIELD, CA - Two rock climbers will ring in the new year safe and sound thanks to Kern County firefighters.
The two men were dangling over Highway 178 in the Kern River Canyon around 2:30 Sunday afternoon. They were about 125-feet above the road. One climber had fallen and hurt himself.
The CHP closed Highway 178 for about 45 minutes while rescue crews set up specialized equipment to bring the climbers down. "The rescue was very technical in the sense that the equipment we were using -- like the ladder truck -- forced us to close Highway 178 and the canyon so the truck could place its outriggers securely on asphalt," said battalion chief Shawn Whittington, Kern County Fire.
Fire officials say the climber who fell suffered minor injuries. He was transported to an area hospital to be checked out.
The two men were dangling over Highway 178 in the Kern River Canyon around 2:30 Sunday afternoon. They were about 125-feet above the road. One climber had fallen and hurt himself.
The CHP closed Highway 178 for about 45 minutes while rescue crews set up specialized equipment to bring the climbers down. "The rescue was very technical in the sense that the equipment we were using -- like the ladder truck -- forced us to close Highway 178 and the canyon so the truck could place its outriggers securely on asphalt," said battalion chief Shawn Whittington, Kern County Fire.
Fire officials say the climber who fell suffered minor injuries. He was transported to an area hospital to be checked out.