Buffalo, NY – Erie County Sheriff Timothy B. Howard reports Erie County Sheriff’s dispatchers received a call around 5:15 p.m. Tuesday about a two and a half-year-old victim who fell down a ravine at Emery Park.

East Aurora Police Department’s Lieutenant Welch was first to respond and he descended the ravine to the child.  The lieutenant located the victim and reported the boy was conscious but had sustained a laceration to the back of his head.  Members of the Erie County SWAT High Angle Rope Rescue Team, assisted by East Aurora Fire Department’s rope team, deployed approximately 150 feet of rope to reach the victim and executed a rope rescue. 

The child was lifted from the ravine where first aid personnel prepared the victim for transport, via Mercy Flight, to Buffalo’s Women and Children’s Hospital for additional evaluation and treatment. 

Erie County Sheriff Detectives, through their investigations, determined the boy, while walking with his mother, had slipped and fell to the bottom of the ravine.  The victim’s mother tried to descend into the ravine but could not negotiate the steep ravine walls. A fellow park visitor heard the screams and came to her aide and later managed to make his way down to the victim.

The Erie County Sheriff’s Office would like to recognize and thank the many agencies that assisted in the rescue.

Participating Agencies:

East Aurora Police Department

East Aurora Fire rope rescue team

East Aurora Fire Company

South Wales Fire Company

Rural Metro

Mercy Flight

Erie County Park Rangers

Erie County Emergency Services

Erie County Sheriff's Air-1

New York State Police