Newfane, N.Y. (AP) — Authorities say an 86-year-old western New York woman is recovering after she spent about an hour clinging to a tree after tumbling off a cliff.
The Niagara Gazette reports that Beverly Blewett was raking leaves in her backyard in the town of Newfane Thursday afternoon when the ground along the edge of a creek gave way, causing her to plunge 30 feet into the 100-foot-deep ravine.
Blewett held onto a tree for about an hour before a neighbor heard her cries for help and called 911.
Two law enforcement officers who happened to be passing by lowered a rope to Blewett, and firefighters used a stretcher to haul Blewett out of the ravine. She only suffered bruises and scratches and was treated at a Buffalo hospital.
Copyright Associated Press 2012. All rights reserved.
