A teenage boy who slipped and fell a hundred feet from a ledge at Falling Rock west of Rapid City a little before 7:00 Sunday evening was rescued by members of Pennington County Search and Rescue.
Rescuers were able to make their way to him down a steep slope between rock outcroppings, but had to perform a high-angle rescue that took about an hour. The teen was taken to Monument Health Hospital for treatment of multiple broken bones.
Falling Rock is a popular hiking and sight-seeing venue requiring just a short stroll to reach the edge of cliffs towering several hundred feet above Rapid Creek.
It’s also dangerous as many visitors ignore warning signs saying not to climb the rocks. A 6-year-old Pierre girl died last year after accidentally falling from a cliff at Falling Rock and there have been at least 9 other deaths in the past.
Sunday’s was captured on a video that was posted online with the videographer exhorting viewers to “be careful out there guys. Too many people die of accidentally falling off Falling Rock. It’s sad, but it’s the truth” – pretty much the same long-time warning given by law enforcement.