Bailey Aldridge
The Charlotte Observer
TRANSYLVANIA, N.C. — A man was airlifted to a hospital after falling 20 feet at a popular Western North Carolina waterfall, officials said.
The man fell into shallow water from a ledge near the side of Looking Glass Falls in Transylvania County on Saturday, July 23, the Transylvania County Rescue Squad said in a Facebook post.
Deputies with the Transylvania County Sheriff’s Office responded to the falls just after 1:30 p.m., WHNS reported.
Bystanders had helped get the man to a “lower observation area,” where first responders “packaged him and carried him to the ambulance,” the rescue squad said.
The man was then airlifted to a hospital with life-threatening injuries, WHNS reported.
His name and current condition had not been released as of Sunday morning, July 24. Officials told WLOS he is around 30 years old.
The rescue squad urged people to be careful in the water at the falls as the “rocks are very slick.”
“One slip can cause serious or fatal injuries,” it said. “We also ask that people stay in the designated recreation areas, and enjoy the forest as it’s meant to be.”
Looking Glass Falls is easily accessible and “one of the most popular falls in Western North Carolina,” according to the U.S. Forest Service. The falls are 60 feet tall and located just off U.S. 276 near Brevard.
“The name ‘Looking Glass’ comes from Looking Glass Rock, where water freezes on its sides in the winter and then glistens in the sunlight like a mirror or looking glass,” the Forest Service says. “Looking Glass Creek, which flows past the rock, is also named for the impressive natural structure.”
Transylvania County is about 40 miles southwest of Asheville.
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