A climber has been critically injured after falling more than 65ft on a classic funnel-like route in Glen Coe.
Two helicopters attended the scene to rescue him and his climbing partner, and two others who had gone to their aid.
The injured man was on Stob Dearg, the highest peak of Buachaille Etive Mor when the accident happened at about 1.30pm on Monday.
It is understood the 37-year-old was leading his climbing partner when he lost his grip on a loose rock and fell, suffering serious head injuries.
In a post on social media, Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team praised the “incredible skill and bravery” of Rescue 151 from Inverness which was able to lower their winch paramedic into a tight gorge to recover the casualty.
Rescue 151 then departed and flew the injured climber to Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow.
A second helicopter, Rescue 199 from Prestwick then arrived and brought a number of Glencoe Mountain Rescue Team members to the hill.
They were then able to assist the climber’s partner and two helpers into a safe position before they were also winched from the hill.
Two other climbers also went to help
The incident happened on The Chasm, on the south-east side of Stob Dearg.
Brian Bathurst, deputy team leader of Glencoe MRT, said The Chasm is a popular climbing route, but poses some danger.
He said: “It is renowned for loose rock in places. It seems that this chap, who was leading his climbing partner, lost his grip on a loose block of rock.
“He fell about 20 metres (65.6 feet). He was roped but he suffered serious head injuries and was in a critical condition. We wish him all the best for a good recovery.
“He was flown by the Inverness coastguard helicopter to hospital while another from Prestwick took us and his climbing partner off the hill, with another two climbers who had also gone to their aid.
“In total we had 14 team members on the job – with seven at base – and we got back around 7pm.”
A Police Scotland spokesperson said: “Around 1.30pm on Monday, we were called to a report of an injured climber on Buachaille Etive Mor, Glencoe.
“Mountain rescue teams and HM Coastguard attended. The 37-year-old man was airlifted to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in Glasgow.”
Second significant fall in just two months
In April, a hero commando died in a 164ft plunge on the same peak.
Colour Sgt Richard ‘Reggie’ Melia, 40, was with a climbing companion on Stob Dearg on 3,351 feet high Buachaille Etive Mòr when he slipped.
His family said his death had left “a gaping hole in our lives that will be impossible to fill”.
Conversation