Rafa is brought back to the top of the cliff. Photo / Fenz
Rafa is brought back to the top of the cliff. Photo / Fenz
Rafa the dog was stuck on Te Mata Peak's famous eastern cliff face, no way up, and a heck of a long way down.
He'd fallen 13 metres while on a walk with his family on the Hawke's Bay peak and was disoriented.
Firefighters rescued a dog who had become lost and stuck down the side of the cliff. Photo / FENZ
Luckily for Rafa, Hawke's Bay's abseiling firefighters,who used a drone to help find him on the cliff and provide real-time images of the rescue, were on hand to save the day.
Senior firefighter Steve Kahu said once they'd found the dog 13m down the cliff, the rest of the rescue was relatively simple - abseil down, pop Rafa in a bag, and bring him back up - a total of 25 minutes work.
Rafa is brought back to the top of the cliff. Photo / Fenz
One firefighter abseiled down the cliff and 12 others were involved for manpower.
A video montage of the Queens Birthday weekend rescue, shows the firefighter abseiling a terrifyingly long way down a vertical cliff to pick up the dog.
"The long weekend got off to a rocky start for the Chung family when a hike up Te Mata Peak ended with their dog Rafa getting lost and stuck down the side of a cliff," they wrote on social media.
It was a "harrowing" experience for the Chung family, but they were delighted to get Rafa back. Photo / FENZ
Fire and Emergency said the Chung family were extremely grateful to be reunited with Rafa.
"It was such a harrowing event for us all. We were distraught - it was such a huge relief when we saw him moving," the family said.
"The whole team were amazing. We are beyond grateful – not only for the rescue but their compassion as well."
Hawke's Bay fire and emergency area commander Ken Cooper said firefighters took such rescues seriously because there was a genuine risk to the dog, but also that upset owners might attempt a rescue themselves.
Cooper said firefighters are called to Te Mata Peak several times a year, including to walkers and mountain bikers in trouble, but a dog down a cliff was not common.
