A woman airlifted from cliffs after falling from the Elie chain walk on Thursday has pledged to return to the area when she recovers.
Alison Ness spent two agonising hours shocked and shivering on rocks several feet below the narrow path after suffering a dislocated shoulder and a suspected broken collar bone.
The 65-year-old’s injuries meant she was unable to pull herself up and paramedics were unwilling to move her over the rocks because of the pain she was in.
Had the tide been in at the time, she would have been submerged.
Alison and husband Andrew had been undertaking the tricky walk over some of Fife’s most rugged coastline as part of an award scheme.
The Dunfermline couple are hiking the entire length of the 117-mile coastal path during their endeavour and are determined to complete it when Alison returns to fitness, although next time they will miss out the chain walk.
Daughter-in-law Deborah Ness from Lochgelly said Alison and the entire family wanted to extend their thanks to the lifeboat and coastguard crews, as well as the paramedics, who came to her aid.
“They got to the chain walk and managed to get across the first cliff when Alison lost her footing and just slipped,” she said.
“She dislocated her shoulder and there was no way she could pull herself back up.”
Deborah, who is married to the couple’s son Christopher, said a worried Andrew phoned 999 and the coastguard and lifeboats from Anstruther were on the scene within minutes.
“They said the only way to move her would be to carry her over the rocks and put her in a dinghy before moving her to the main boat,” she said.
“Because of the pain she was in they didn’t want to do that so a paramedic gave her gas and air until the coastguard search and rescue helicopter could get through from Prestwick.”
Alison, who has another son Douglas and four grandchildren, was winched into the helicopter before being transferred to a waiting ambulance and taken to Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy.
She is now waiting to see an orthopaedic surgeon to fully assess the extent of her injuries.
“She said everybody was fantastic,” said Deborah.
“They’re very lucky they could get a phone signal and that the tide was out.
“They were told the sea would have been covering an area 15 feet above where she was if it had been in.
“They had checked the tides before the went though so they knew it would be out.”
Deborah added: “Alison’s a bit shaken up but she’s okay.
“She’s saying she needs to get back to finish the walk, just not the chain walk!”
