A PARACHUTIST suffered a suspected fractured leg after getting tangled 20m high up a phone mast.

It is thought another man climbed to the aid of the dangling parachutist, who struck the mast in Halstead Road, High Garrett, at around 5.45pm on Sunday.

All three emergency services rushed to the scene and fire crews used an aerial ladder platform to rescue the two men.

The 30-year-old parachutist and the other man - who suffered minor injuries - were both taken to Broomfield Hospital in Chelmsford for further treatment.

One woman, who lives opposite the mast, said: "There was an RAC van parked up and lots of police cars - it was absolutely mad.

"There were two people up there - one was wearing a helmet. He seemed quite calm sitting up there.

"When he was down, I think he walked off down the road - a guy had loads of bags with his parachute in.

"We have been here 16 years and have never seen anything like it before."

Neil Tentner, who lives nearby, said: "The aerial ladder was coming down slowly. I only saw the one man, there was a lot of commotion.

"I don't know what they were up to but I heard they were base jumping. It has happened before."

Jenny Wicks, of Halstead Road, said: "The policeman had his helmet under his arm and the person was on the ground.

"There were fire engines, police and lots of flashing lights. We thought, 'oh dear'."

A spokesman for the ambulance service said it was called at 5.49pm to reports of an incident where two parachutists had been caught on a telephone mast.

It sent two rapid response vehicles, an ambulance and the hazardous area response team.

The spokesman confirmed neither of the two men are believed to be in a serious or life-threatening condition.

Police confirmed they were called shortly after 5.50pm with concerns for the safety of a parachutist.

Three fire crews, one from Halstead and two from Colchester, carried out the rescue.

  • Are you the parachutist or the rescuer? Get in touch by emailing gazette.news@nqe.com