A fallen climber has been rescued after he became trapped behind a rushing California waterfall and remained stuck there for two days.
Ryan Wardwell, 46, was rappelling down the Kern River cliffside in Sequoia National Forest when "extreme hydraulics" forced him off his line, and he fell into an open space behind the Seven Teacups waterfall.
The following day, he was reported missing, and a rescue effort was launched when officials noticed that his car hadn't moved from a nearby parking lot.
Over two days of searching, rescuers used everything from infrared cameras to helicopters, but were unsuccessful until a drone caught sight of the trapped climber behind the waterfall. Wardwell was alive and conscious, but noticeably weak, after spending two days with only damp rocks for company.
Footage posted to Facebook shows rescuers from the Tulare County Sheriff's Office travelling down from a helicopter and hoisting Wardwell to safety.
"It had to have been miserable"
Following his rescue, Sheriff's Office Captain Kevin Kemmerling told the San Francisco Chronicle that Wardwell had "tried for days to escape, but there was nothing he could do to break through.
“There was no way for him to warm up or dry out in there, so it had to have been miserable," he continued.
Kemmerling also suggested that “nobody should be doing stuff like that solo, period," as solo climbers and canyoneers are often unable to get help in emergencies.
Wardwell is now safe and recovering from the ordeal after sustaining a few minor injuries and suffering from dehydration.
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