Holiday weekend rescues keep first responders busy

A lot of people are off work for the holidays, but not first responders.

“We had a couple calls on the greenbelt,” said Division Chief Palmer Buck with the Austin Fire Department.

What was supposed to be a fun weekend turned into trouble for some.

“We had a lady with a medical condition who we had to pull out of the Barton Creek greenbelt,” said Buck.

Then just early Monday morning, a man fell 40 feet off the Pennybacker Bridge on Loop 360. Shockingly  he walked away with just minor injuries.

“We rigged him up, hauled him up the cliff and got him out,” said Buck.

The weather was not on rescuers side Monday.

“We had incredibly difficult conditions with fog and rain so star flight was unable to make it because of weather. They did not have the visibility they needed so the rescue took a little bit longer,” said Buck.

The new year is a time to reflect and look forward to the future, but there still are unfortunate things like these that happen. First responders are just glad the holiday weekend was not any worse.

“We had a really bad New Year’s five years ago when we put three people in the burn center from three separate fires,” said Buck.