Schoolboy, 15 falls 60ft from iconic cliffs while having photo taken by friend

21 June 2024 , 18:44

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The 15-year-old fell 60ft off the edge of the cliff (Image: BNPS)

A schoolboy who fell 60ft off the edge of a

while trying to take a photo miraculously suffered only "minor injuries".

The 15-year-old was on a geography school trip to Old Harry Rocks in Studland, Dorset, when he "disappeared" over the cliff edge as his pal tried to get a picture of him. Coastguards said it was a "miracle" he wasn't seriously injured as he toppled from the 60ft height - equivalent to a six storey building, or four double-decker busses stacked on top of one another.

The boy landed on shingle as various rescue teams were scrambled to the scene on Thurday, June 20 - including Swanage and St Albans Coastguard teams, both Swanage RNLI Lifeboats, Dorset Police, South Western Ambulance, and a Dorset and Somerset Air Ambulance Critical Care team.

The boy was having his photo taken at the beauty spot when he fell (BNPS)

Miraculously, the student had only sustained a small cut to his head and a few scratches on his back.

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After a thorough evaluation, he was released back to his group after being given some strong safety advice about his actions. Ian Brown, station officer for Swanage Coastguard, said: "The students had been briefed on not going near the cliff edge.

"But it would appear the group were having some downtime and one lad wanted a photo taken by his friend near the cliff edge. He went towards it, and then his friends said they just saw him 'disappear over the edge'. I'd be surprised if he wasn't a bit sore today, but everyone was absolutely amazed he didn't have any major injuries.

Various rescue crews rushed to the area (BNPS)

"It's that safety message we want to raise - please stay away from cliff edges. When we say don't go near the cliff edge, we mean within five metres - don't be tempted to even go near it.

He added: "I want to share a final thank you to everyone that attended yesterday - from the local kayaking group to all the emergency services. I've been doing this for 34 years and we've had some miracles - this is certainly one of those."

Lifeboat crews arrived to find the young male being attended to by a local kayak company who had been passing on the water and stopped to help. A HM Coastguard spokesperson said: "The alarm was raised at about 1.45pm on 20 June. The boy was recovered safe and well from the beach by the RNLI's inshore lifeboat from Swanage and passed into the care of South West Ambulance Service."

Zahra Khaliq