Dramatic rescue as bell-ringer is winched 80ft to cathedral’s floor
A CATHEDRAL bell ringer left with a suspected fracture of the spine after being hoisted in the air by a rope, has been rescued by firefighters.
Ian Bowman, 51, who was lowered 80ft to safety by fire crews, suffered serious injuries when he was pulled upward by the bell at Worcester Cathedral and crashed down again.
Mr Bowman, part of a touring group from Widecombe in Devon, had climbed more than 200 steps with fellow ringers to reach their post in the bell tower for evensong on Saturday.
After the accident he was left on the floor of the tower’s Ringing Room, with a head injury and a suspected fractured back.
Firefighters, trained in recovering casualties from the tower which was built in 1374, lowered him on a special stretcher through a trap-door to the ground.
About 20 firefighters from Malvern and Worcester, including a team specialising in rope rescues, took part in the operation which lasted almost two hours during the evensong service. Mr Bowman was taken to Worcestershire Royal Hospital but was later released after treatment.
Mr Bowman was back at home in Devon yesterday and said: “I am waiting for a call to see if I have fractured my spine or not.
“I might have to go to Torbay hospital if that is the case and that is quite a drive away but I am not sure yet. I want to get my health sorted before I talk about what happened.”
Yesterday Mark Regan, ringing master at Worcester Cathedral, described the shocking accident.
He said: “Ian Bowman, an experienced ringer from Devon, got his foot caught in a rope and he fell and hurt his head.
“He got his foot caught when a rope was moving and he went up in the air a couple of feet and landed awkwardly.
“He is fine, emergency services were brilliant. They had been here to practise, so they knew what to do. It was quite dramatic.” Mr Regan said it was “very reassuring” to know the firefighters were trained to deal with an emergency situation in parts of the cathedral that are difficult to reach. He added: “It is not a safety issue, it is clearly a freak accident. It has nothing to do with the safety of bell ringing.”
Group Commander Grant Wills, of Hereford and Worcester Fire and Rescue, tweeted: “Technical and challenging job to rescue one male from bell tower, professional crews a credit to the community.”
Mr Bowman is a regular bell-ringer in his village of Widecombe-in-the-Moor, famous for its Church of Saint Pancras, dubbed the “Cathedral of the Moor” because of its magnificent 120ft bell tower.