Locator beacon signals hurt woman's location

Palmerston North rescue helicopter

A woman who slipped and hurt her ankle while walking near a campsite in the dark had to be flown to hospital at the weekend.

The victim, in her late 20s or early 30s, injured herself at the Ramanui campsite near the Bridge to Nowhere, Palmerston North rescue helicopter pilot Lance Burns said.

Mr Burns said the woman had been walking when she apparently lost her footing, slipping down a ditch or bank.

The accident happened in the early hours of Sunday while it was still dark.

The rescue helicopter arrived on scene "at first light".

A local jetboat operator reached the woman after she set off her personal locator beacon, but the helicopter met them on scene due to "deteriorating weather".

She was taken to Whanganui Hospital.