Search and rescue teams have several alternatives available to reach paragliders stuck in tall trees. Some teams have climbing specialists who can ascend the trees with ropes and lower the soaring parachutist to the ground. Ladder trucks and cranes are preferred when a roadway is near. Helicopters are often used, but at increased risk.
Rescue teams often resort to the use of extension ladders - but not the kind in your garage. These are heavy, specially-made, triple-rail extension ladders capable of reaching fifty feet or more into the forest canopy. They must be carried by many men and threaded laboriously through the forest - often up steep and difficult slopes - to the incident site, then guyed with ropes or guided with special struts because of their extraordinary length and unwieldy nature, and carefully positioned and extended through the foliage. This blog examines the different types of ladders used on a nearly daily basis in Europe to rescue paragliders from trees.
Search and Rescue teams in European paragliding venues are becoming exhausted rescuing paragliders from trees.