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A climber had to be airlifted to the hospital after an underground zip-wire snapped at a notorious slate mine in Snowdonia.
Mountain rescuers were called to Croesor-Rhosyddin in Eryri after the thrill seeker fell onto the rocks below after their zip wire unexpectedly snapped.
The old slate mine attraction features obstacles known as the ‘chamber of horrors’ and a ‘bridge of death’ suspended across water.
The zip wire broke when the climber set off to cross the lake, with the alarm raised at around 3pm on Sunday.
Part of the climber’s group left the Croesor entrance to call for help, with the Coastguard rescue helicopter rushing to the scene with a stretcher.
The climber managed to make their own way out of the cave to the Rhosydd entrance and was airlifted to the Ysbyty Gwynedd Hospital in Bangor.
Rescuers say the site is the ‘most rescued underground location in North Wales’ – and climbers should have experience and their own equipment.
Visitors are able to travel underground between twin quarries using ropes, suspension bridges, zip wires and inflatable boats.
The climber managed to make their own way out of the cave to the Rhosydd entrance and was airlifted to the Ysbyty Gwynedd Hospital in Bangor
Mountain rescuers were called to Croesor-Rhosyddin in Eryri after the thrill seeker fell onto the rocks below after their zip wire unexpectedly snapped when the climber set off to cross a lake (stock pictured)
Anyone taking on the challenge are told to leave details and timings with a third party in case rescue is needed.
Rescue call-outs dipped last year, but fears have been raised that a tragedy will happen.
One climber, of Llandudno, North Wales, said: ‘This through-route in my opinion is a disaster waiting to happen.
‘I’m certainly never in favour of access restrictions, but it’s only going to be a matter of time before the call-out is to a body recovery.’
North Wales Cave Rescue Organisation (NWCRO) was called to the mine on Sunday after receiving an alert from North Wales Police. The South Snowdonia Search and Rescue Team were also on site.
A NWCRO spokesperson said: ‘We had a call from North Wales Police that the casualty had managed to make their own way out.
‘They were now at the Rhosydd entrance to the mine but needed assistance to progress any further. The helicopter was duly dispatched to collect the casualty who was then flown to Ysbyty Gwynedd in Bangor.’
A spokesperson for South Snowdonia Search & Rescue Team said: ‘We were glad to be able to help out in this situation, big job. Wishing the casualty a speedy recovery.’
It comes after mountain rescuers were called three times within just two hours as fierce weather conditions hit the Scottish Highland on Sunday.
Two walkers had to be manually stretchered off a mountain as the night-time dramas unfolded at Glencoe.
The first call-out, on Sunday, came at 2pm when a party of three climbers, two men and a woman, suffered a nasty fall in Coire nan Lochan.
One climber was injured and needed to be airlifted for further treatment – but that plan was scuppered by the weather conditions which meant the Coastguard Rescue helicopter couldn’t land nearby, or even get close enough to winch the climber up.
As a result, volunteers from the Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team had to embark on a two-hour stretcher carry to get the climber back to roadside, where they could be transported for further treatment by ambulance.
Just as the volunteers concluded that rescue, a second call came in to assist a walker who had sustained a leg injury at Coire Gabhail.
Two walkers were stretchered off a mountain after three dramatic rescue missions took place in one night at Glencoe
With most of the mountain rescue team engaged in rescue efforts already, a third call came in to assist two walkers on the Pap of Glencoe
The walker was unable to bear weight on their injured leg, and with the Coastguard Rescue Helicopter again unable to help, meant a second lengthy stretcher carry was required.
A group of passing climbers offered to help the volunteers as they took the climber back down to the roadside, so they could be taken by ambulance for further treatment in hospital.
With most of the mountain rescue team already engaged in rescue efforts, a third call came in to assist two walkers on the Pap of Glencoe.
In 2024, a father and his twelve-year-old son died while hillwalking in Glencoe in thundery conditions.
Tom Parry, 49, and his son Richie, 12, were hiking in the Scottish Highlands, but a search mission was launched after the pair were not seen or heard from.
A massive search for the pair was mounted involving mountain rescue teams and a coastguard helicopter, with their bodies found on May 29, 2024.
The year before, three hillwalkers were found dead after failing to return from a trip to Glencoe.
An experienced mountain guide David Fowler, 39, and two of his clients, Graham Cox, 60, and Hazel Crombie, 64, were ‘roped together’ when they fell to their deaths while trying to navigate a treacherous hillwalking ridge.
The alarm was raised just after 9.05pm on August 5, 2023, with rescuers finding their bodies in the early hours of the following day.