Dog survives 150ft cliff fall at Dales waterfalls

A dog owner has shared his amazement after his pet survived a 150ft cliff fall at a set of waterfalls in the Yorkshire Dales.

Wolf, a four-year-old lurcher, fell from height into the River Swale at Kisdon Force, near the village of Keld, on Sunday, sparking a rescue operation involving North Yorkshire Fire & Rescue Service and Swaledale Mountain Rescue Team.

"Out of nowhere he must've darted after a rabbit or a squirrel and he went straight over the edge of this cliff," said Jimmy Williams, Wolf's owner.

Wolf, who has since been checked over by vets, only sustained some bruising during the ordeal, Jimmy, from Northallerton, said.

"I couldn't believe he survived the fall initially," said Jimmy.

"He was just clinging on to these three little rocks in the middle of the river."

Due to limited phone signal in the area, Jimmy's partner Laurie Debois had to head into the village to call emergency services.

"It was almost three o'clock when he fell and I ran into the village to ask for a phone," says Laurie.

"By the time we managed to get Wolf out of the water it was around eight o'clock, it was a good few hours he was stuck for," Jimmy added.

"I remember speaking to one of the firefighters, the first thing he did was look at the cliff and look at the dog and say, 'there is no way that dog should be alive'."

Fire crews used a reach pole to rescue Wolf from the island of rocks, with the mountain rescue team helping to get the dog to safe ground.

"Because it's so steep and quite remote, you have to use rope systems to get to the bottom," said rescue controller Ian Speirs, of Swaledale Mountain Rescue.

"We've winched three casualties out from there over the last seven or eight years so it can be a bit of a hotspot."

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