Woman wedged upside down between boulders for seven hours after trying to retrieve phone in regional NSW

A woman was wedged between boulders for seven hours after she slipped head-first into a three-metre crevice while trying to retrieve her phone in regional New South Wales.

Matilda Campbell’s friends initially spent an hour attempting to free her while she was hanging upside down before they called triple zero for help, NSW Ambulance said this week.

The operation to free her from the “unlikely predicament” in the Hunter Valley on Saturday 12 October involved a team of “multidisciplinary” emergency workers.

They removed several heavy boulders to create a safe access point. Then, “with both feet now accessible”, the workers navigated Campbell – aged in her early 20s – feet first up through a “tight S bend”, which took an hour.

View image in fullscreen Rescuers used a specialist winch to move one 500kg boulder. Photograph: NSW Ambulance

A specialist winch was used to move one 500kg boulder. A hardwood frame was also constructed to “ensure stability” during the rescue.

“In my 10 years as a rescue paramedic I had never encountered a job quite like this,” Peter Watts, a specialist rescue paramedic, said on Monday. “It was challenging but incredibly rewarding.

“Every agency had a role and we all worked incredibly well together to achieve a good outcome for the patient.”

Campbell was freed with only minor scratches and bruises. Her phone could not be retrieved, NSW Ambulance said.

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View image in fullscreen Matilda Campbell was trapped for seven hours but only suffered minor scratches and bruises. Photograph: NSW Ambulance

Campbell posted on social media: “It’s safe to say I’m the most accidental prone person ever. I am OK just have some injuries I’m recovering from, no more rock exploration for me for a while!”

She said she “wanted to give the biggest shoutout to my friends [and] the team who worked so hard to get me out”.

“I’m forever thankful as most likely I would [otherwise] not be here today.”