Emergency services are urging hikers to be wary in the Glass House Mountains, after a horror day at a prominent peak in the national park.
Queensland Ambulance Service Sunshine Coast operations supervisor Leighton Allen reminded trekkers to be prepared and to take care when they scale the region’s landmarks, after a woman died and two men were rescued in separate incidents at Mount Beerwah on Saturday.
“Enjoy the outdoors but be prepared and stay safe,” he said.
“It is a case of doing some research and knowing whether you are capable.
“Accidents still do happen, but certainly try to do some research.
“You can go and have a look without climbing them, and see if you are capable physically, and possibly mentally, to climb the mountains.
“At certain times of year they (the Glass House Mountains) can be wet, and during summer it can get hot and humid there, which can impact a person’s ability.
“And it (the terrain) can be quite rugged.”
Frightful figures provided to Sunshine Coast News in January emphasised the hazards of climbing the region’s most conspicuous summits.
A woman, believed to be from the Sunshine Coast, fell about 40m on to rocks on the eastern face of the peak about 1.40pm on Saturday.
“We believe she and her friend were coming down the mountain and somehow there has been a tragic accident,” Mr Allen said.
“Her friend tried to render first aid but once our emergency services staff got to the scene, she was deceased.”
It was one of three serious incidents within about eight hours.
Earlier, about 7.26am, a 52-year-old man suffered significant leg, head and possible chest injuries in a parachuting incident, falling about 30m.
He was winched off the mountain and taken to the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital.
Later, about 4.28pm, a 30-year-old man fell about 10m and suffered a shoulder injury. He was extricated and taken to Sunshine Coast University Hospital.
RACQ LifeFlight Rescue, Queensland Ambulance Service, Queensland Fire and Emergency Services, SES and Queensland Police Service personnel were utilised during the day.
Mr Allen said rescue services went to “remarkable efforts”.
“They are always there to respond to these (types) of incidents,” he said.
“It’s just unfortunate that these types of incidents, because of the length of time they are conducted in, do drain quite heavily upon our resources and it impacts upon our ability to respond to the community at large.”
He said there was up to 30 emergency services staff involved in each event on Saturday.
“Any incident takes a long time (to attend) so that impact upon resources is quite significant.”
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