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Hope for the best, prepare for the worst: Nashville Fire leans on training for high-risk rescue

This comes one day after rescuing a base jumper who some say is lucky to be alive.
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NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — Could you imagine starting your day off with high-angle rescue training at 8 a.m.? High-angle rescue training is any time they have to lower a first responder on a rope to save people.

Now imagine using that same training 12 hours later to save a life. Hard to imagine right? Well not for the Nashville Fire Department (NFD).

Nashville firefighters shared with NewsChannel 5 on Tuesday, what it takes to pull off high-risk rescues.

This comes one day after rescuing a base jumper who some say is lucky to be alive.

Nashville Fire Department was told they had a jumper stuck 150 feet below near a quarry off White Creek Pike. Turns out, it was more like 300 feet.

Witnesses said a group of people were base jumping when one person’s parachute did not open, sending them careening toward a ledge near the top of the quarry.

Firefighters later created what’s called a “stokes basket” to stabilize the patient and raise them back to safety. It’s something they say is a part of training.

The process took longer than anticipated, but Nashville Fire representatives say they chose to take all the necessary precautions.

The patient was transported to Vanderbilt Hospital with a few broken bones, but no life-threatening injuries.

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