A MAJOR rescue operation took place after a woman fell and injured herself near a steep slope in dense woodland.

The challenging rescue, which lasted up to four hours, took place at the Chevin Forest Park, overlooking Otley, on Saturday.

The woman, aged 47, had suffered a suspected fractured leg during the fall at the isolated spot and was in need of assistance.

Crew members from Yorkshire Ambulance Service got to the scene and realised the scale of the challenge ahead of them.

After assessing the difficult terrain, they called on help from the Calder Valley Search & Rescue Team.

The rescue team, which is based in Mytholmroyd, quickly dispatched a team consisting of 15 of its members.

Chevin Forest Park consists of a north-facing cliff, which rises to a height of 280m above sea level.

A spokesman for the rescue team said: "A 47-year-old female had fallen and sustained a possible lower leg closed fracture at Chevin Forest Park, Otley.

"Due to the steep, densely wooded and slippery location, the team used a rope system with four ‘barrow boys’ attached to the Bell stretcher, to evacuate the casualty, some 125 metres down the hillside to the road below and the waiting ambulance."

A series of dramatic images of the rescue have been released by the Calder Valley team.

By last night, reports of the incident on the Search and Rescue team's Facebook page had been 'liked' dozens of time, while one person commented that the incident was "a bit out of area."

The Chevin Forest Park park, which was designated as a Local Nature Reserve in 1989, is more than 20 miles from Mytholmroyd.

Calder Valley Search and Rescue Team described itself as a charity providing a life-saving emergency service to the people of the Calder Valley and beyond.

The team attends an average of 60 callouts each year and is staffed entirely by 50 unpaid volunteers.

It costs around £35,000 a year to keep the team operational, all of which is raised through donations - we receive no direct government funding.