Park City man ‘lucky to be alive’ after falling 81 feet at Starved Rock State Park

A Park City man grabbed a hold of a tree along a trail to get a better view of the Hennepin Canyon at Starved Rock State Park on Saturday afternoon. He slipped, turned 180 degrees and lost his grip of the tree trunk, falling 81 feet into the canyon.

The 36-year-old man was rescued and brought up by rope, then taken to an OSF LifeFlight helicopter across from Parkman’s Plain and flown to OSF St. Francis Medical Center in Peoria with severe injuries, said Illinois Department of Natural Resources Conservation Police Sgt. Phil Wire.

“He’s lucky to be alive,” Wire said, noting the man was talking to emergency responders.

Route 71 was closed for two hours as emergency crews made the rescue. The Mutual Aid Box Alarm System 25 Tactical team, Ottawa river rescue, Utica and Oglesby fire and EMS, La Salle County Sheriff’s Office and La Salle County Emergency Management Agency assisted in the response.

The man fell from the west bluff of the canyon just before 2:30 p.m. Saturday. The bluff trail near Hennepin Outlook runs alongside a steep drop where the man fell and he was believed to be on-trail prior to his fall, Wire said. As the man fell, he also hit a tree branch before reaching the floor, breaking the branch, Wire said.