A teenage girl is recovering in hospital after falling off a cliff in Meat Cove.
The 17-year-old is the second person to plunge off a cliff in the popular hiking spot in northern Cape Breton in the past two weeks.
The young woman was last seen leaving a home in the area around 2 a.m. Sunday and police received a call around 7:45 a.m. that she had been found at the bottom of the cliffs.
Emergency crews and community members used a boat to rescue the girl and take her to the Bay St. Lawrence wharf.
Police say the teen was conscious, but in serious condition, when she was taken to hospital.
Eric and Katie Arsenault spent the night at a private cliffside campground in Meat Cove – the same location where a 64-year-old camper plunged more than 80 feet to his death on Aug. 24.
“You need a lot of respect because they are quite steep,” says Eric Arsenault. “It’s a long way to the water and the rocks below.”
While the long mountainous trek up the cliffs of Meat Cove offers amazing views of ocean vistas, campers says it’s best to strike a balance between sightseeing and safety.
“You’ve got to get up there and get as close as you can and have a look, but within reason,” says camper Adam Berkner.
However, that’s not always the case for visitorswho are unfamiliar with the remote, rugged terrain.
The teen who fell on the weekend is from the area and police say she plunged over the cliff while riding an ATV.
“I’ve personally responded to three in the Meat Cove, Bay St. Lawrence area,” says volunteer Fire Chief Scott MacKinnon. “We’ve also responded to several on North Mountain.”
Some are calling for protective fencing to prevent fatal falls, but MacKinnon doesn’t think fences or warning signs can replace common sense when venturing close to areas with countless cliffs.
“By the time you are old enough to read, if you don’t know to stay away from a cliff, then you are probably not going to.”
With files from CTV Atlantic's Randy MacDonald
