Man Got Stuck On Cliffs At Laurel Hill Park, Needed To Be Rescued

SECAUCUS, NJ — The man who needed to be rescued Tuesday evening at Laurel Hill Park in Secaucus had hiked up into the cliffs at Snake Hill, and he was unable to get back down, said Secaucus Fire Chief Larry Marciano.

Marciano said the man was young; he estimated him to be in his teens or 20s.

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"He was not past 30," said the fire chief. He does not know where the man lives.

He said the man got into Snake Hill through a blocked-off area "in the back, where they are doing construction." (NJ Transit has a large construction site in the back of the park, under the Turnpike, where they are building the portal bridge replacement project.) It appeared the young man was just exploring.

He was able to enter the blocked-off area and he climbed up the rocks and cliffs. However, he became stuck on his attempt to get back down, said the fire chief.

"He could not get down. It's all rocks there and he got himself hung up in an area where it's all loose rocks," said Marciano. "Rocks were falling and it would have been an avalanche. He really was stuck about 50 feet up."

Someone called 911; it may have been the man himself; Marciano was not sure. It took Secaucus volunteer firefighters about an hour and a half to get him down, starting from just before 8 p.m. and lasting until 9:30.

Fire trucks had to re-position themselves multiple times under Snake Hill and twice extend a ladder up onto the cliffs. Marciano said on the second attempt "we got it just long enough to get to him. One guy was at the tip of the ladder and helped him on."

He said the young man was in good spirits when he was rescued, and he was extremely grateful to the volunteer firefighters. He declined medical attention from a waiting ambulance.

"He just got stuck," said Marciano. "He really thanked us and said he felt bad."

First report: Secaucus Firefighters Rescue Man At Laurel Hill Park