Cape Breton teen in hospital after falling nearly 40 feet over cliff in Glace Bay
The rugged beauty of Cape Breton's coastline has been attracting people to the water's edge for years, but getting too close has dangerous consequences.
“From where I live, I’ve seen too many times over the years, I can look right over the water and see the choppers, the search boats out there looking for people that got too close to these cliffs. Please people, stay away from the edge of these cliffs. you don't know how dangerous they are,” urged Billy Cameron, who lives near cliffs in Glace Bay, N.S.
It's a warning Cameron is giving to others, after his 16-year-old son fell nearly 40 feet to the shoreline below.
The teen, who is also named Billy, is now in a Halifax hospital with serious injuries.
“He had a rough night last night according to my wife who is up there with him in Halifax. He was in a lot of pain last night. He broke both his feet. There's a rod placed in his spine,” said Cameron.
Glace Bay Fire Chief John Chant says the call came in around 5 p.m. on Tuesday.
“From my understanding, he was there a substantial amount of time, anywhere from four to six hours,” said Chant.
Chant says special equipment and crews were required to rescue the teen and bring him back to solid ground.
“They formulated a plan; with the help of ropes and different equipment, they were able to repel down, package the victim into a basket and bring him up,” he said.
Now, the community is coming together to support the family however they can.
Glace Bay's Miner’s Village Restaurant has donated two tickets to attend a concert of the Men of the Deeps, as well as a supper for two. Tickets are also being sold for half-a-dozen lobsters.
The money from the sales will be used to assist the family, with a long road of recovery ahead.
“It’s an unexpected trip to Halifax. Billy could be there for several months. We don't know. It's pretty devastating,” said Miranda MacAulay, the fundraiser's organizer.
Cameron says he's thankful for the support, but there's one woman in particular that he's still searching for. The woman who found his son's cellphone and heard him hollering below.
“I would love for the lady that found him to get in touch with me because I don’t know who you are. I’m so appreciative of that lady because we would have never found him,” he said
For anyone interested, tickets are $5 each and can be purchased at the Miner's Village Restaurant or by an email-transfer to Mirzz_17@hotmail.com with the password "Billy."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.