A hike through Minnehaha Park turned treacherous Saturday evening when a father and son became trapped on a slippery rock ledge, unable to climb up or down a steep cliff face near the falls. Minneapolis firefighters answered the call and pulled both of them to safety one at a time using specialized technical rescue gear. Neither was hurt.
According to KSTP, the call for help came in at 5:20 p.m. Saturday, reporting two people stranded 75 to 100 feet below the trail near 48th Street and Minnehaha Avenue, just south of Minnehaha Falls. The pair had been hiking in the park when they found themselves trapped on the slick ledge, unable to safely climb in either direction along the cliff face.
Crews deployed specialized technical rescue equipment to reach the stranded father and son, bringing them up individually rather than attempting a simultaneous extraction. Both walked away uninjured, the station's report notes, a relatively fortunate outcome given the terrain involved.
A Park With a History of Technical Rescues
This isn't the first time Minneapolis fire crews have had to scale or rappel into the ravines and bluffs surrounding the city's waterways to pull someone out. On December 29, 2021, crews rescued a woman who had fallen into the cave behind a frozen Minnehaha Falls and injured her ankle, unable to climb out on her own, according to the Star Tribune. In that case, crews used ropes and harnesses to reach her and hauled her to safety in a rescue basket before she was taken to a hospital; no other injuries were reported.
The Star Tribune also notes that authorities warn year after year about the dangers of getting onto the ice at Minnehaha Falls, where a moving creek continues to flow underneath even when the surface looks frozen solid.
Similar Rescues Along the River Bluffs
Steep terrain near Minneapolis waterways has produced other technical rescues in recent memory. Near the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities campus, a man was rescued after falling down a steep river bluff, with firefighters rappelling about 20 feet down the embankment to reach him, per Bring Me The News.
In another incident, Minneapolis fire crews rescued a man who had fallen off a 10-foot river bluff on a Saturday evening, according to KSTP. Fire officials said that man was conscious but in serious condition, with broken legs and a possible back injury, and crews used a boat to bring him from the riverbank to the U of M Row Club, where paramedics were waiting. The evidence doesn't point to a confirmed pattern tying these incidents together, but each underscores how quickly a walk near the water's edge can turn into a full technical rescue operation for Minneapolis fire crews.
