Dog retrieved in dramatic cliff hanger

A dog, which found itself stuck on the side of a cliff at Bells Beach, was retrieved by CFA firefighters during a dramatic rope rescue on Saturday, 19 October.

Dog retrieved in dramatic cliff hanger

Photo: Ford Imagery

Six CFA vehicles were called to the scene just after 12.30pm to find the Border Collie, named Jimmy, stranded around 20 metres from the top of the cliff, with the beach swell below.

Crews on scene performed a high angle rope rescue to retrieve the dog before it was safely brought up from the cliff without injuries at around 3pm.

District 7 Commander Mark Sinkinson said crews battled “fairly harsh” and heavy scrub before they got in position to rescue the dog.

“It all went really well, CFA crews worked well with SES and particularly the Geelong City firefighters and their rescue capabilities, they did a great job assessing for dangers and got the job done,” Mr Sinkinson said.

“We were all pretty happy to get Jimmy out, it was a good result in the end and a good training run.

“We’ve had to rescue people there over the years, so it’s good to do some skills maintenance.”

Jimmy the dog was returned to his owner shortly after he was lifted to safety.

Photo: Ford Imagery

/CFA News Release. View in full here.