Mother and 2-Year-Old Daughter Survive 100-Foot Fall From Multnomah Falls Trail in Oregon

By Natasha Dado November 09, 2021 10:02 AM

A mother and her young daughter survived a 100-foot fall while hiking in northwestern Oregon on Sunday.

Around 12:19 p.m. on Sunday, deputies with the Multnomah County Sheriff's Office responded to a Multnomah Falls trail to assist the woman and her 2-year-old child, KGW-TV reported. According to the outlet, the toddler started to slip off one of the main trails. When her mother tried to help her, both tumbled into a creek below.

"We heard some yelling, a woman at the top of her lungs, 'Help me, help me!' " a hiker who was at the scene told KGW-TV.

Bystanders rushed to intervene, including an off-duty ER doctor, the MCSO said.

"We started gathering what we could from the gift shop, blankets and coats," another witness told the TV station. "Then by the time I was able to bring them out here a lot of great people, Good Samaritans were already surrounding the little one with blankets and coats."

The mother and daughter were then hospitalized, the MSCO said. Neither sustained life-threatening injuries during the fall, and both were "alert and conscious" when first responders arrived, MSCO spokesperson Chris Liedl told NBC News.

Despite initial reports that the mother and daughter fell about 50 feet, Liedl said the distance was much greater.

"It was initially reported to 911 the height of the fall was approximately 50 feet. After confirming where the two hikers fell, responders believe the fall was closer to 100-150 feet," he explained.

After the accident, the sheriff's office released a statement thanking the bystanders for assisting in the effort.

"MCSO would like to thank the bystanders for their assistance while emergency personnel were en route," the statement said, per KGW-TV.

As temperatures drop and the weather changes, a state park ranger urged visitors to be mindful of the conditions at Multnomah Falls for safety's sake.

"Right now we are talking about really slippery terrain, uneven footing, potential for landslides," he told KGW-TV.