Niagara Falls jumper in stable condition

NIAGARA FALLS -- A man who survived a plunge of at least 180 feet over Niagara Falls -- only the third person known to have done so without a safety device -- was in stable condition yesterday, a day after his apparent suicide attempt that led to a dramatic and painstaking rescue.

On a warm and sunny Victoria Day holiday morning in Canada, the man climbed over a railing 20 to 30 feet out over the Horseshoe Falls, the tallest of the three main falls, and "deliberately jumped" into the Niagara River, according to witness accounts given to Niagara Parks Police.

Seriously injured, he surfaced in the lower river basin near an observation platform and managed to make it to shore on his own, likely swept there by an eddy, said Platoon Chief Dan Orescanin of the Niagara Falls, Ontario, Fire Department. Rescuers had to rappel down the steep and rocky gorge to reach him.

The man, whose name wasn't released, was conscious and talking at first but got quiet, Orescanin said. He appeared to have chest injuries, including broken ribs and a collapsed lung.

From there, about seven rescuers hauled a basket carrying the man back up the cliff to a point where it could be lifted with ropes suspended from an aerial truck. The rescue took about two hours.

The man, believed to be in his 30s or 40s, was airlifted to Hamilton General Hospital. A spokeswoman said he was critical but expected to survive.