Late-night mission to save base jumper stranded 23 storeys up Auckland hotel

A daring late-night rescue saw a base jumper pulled to safety through an apartment window after becoming stranded 23 storeys above central Auckland. 

The man was left clinging to the outside of the Hotel Indigo on Albert Street after jumping from its 27th-floor roof last night, Fire and Emergency northern shift manager Josh Pennefather said. 

Fire and Emergency’s high angle rope rescue team had been deployed and had worked to reach the stranded jumper and had brought them in through an apartment window, Pennefather said. 

Around 11pm, a first responder could be seen carefully working on a protective window pane near where the person was stuck. 

A man and his parachute could be seen against the Hotel Indigo building during a late-night rescue last night. Photo / NZ Herald 

The man was stranded between 20 and 25 storeys above Albert St. Photo / NZ Herald 

Drilling could be heard from street level, while curtains were opened in an apartment above. 

About 50 people gathered on surrounding streets to watch the operation. 

The onlookers cheered loudly as the parachutist was pulled into the apartment by rescuers. 

Hato Hone St John said it sent an operations manager, an ambulance and a rapid-response unit to Albert St after being called at 10.40pm. 

The parachutist was treated for minor injuries after being rescued and did not need to be taken to hospital. 

Specialist crews worked to reach the base jumper on the exterior of the central Auckland hotel. Photo / NZ Herald 

The Herald has requested further comment from police about the rescue including whether anyone has been arrested. 

It follows an incident just weeks ago where an extreme athlete from Europe filmed himself base jumping from Auckland’s abandoned Seascape tower. Police described the jump from the 187m tower as “reckless”. 

A base jumper is someone who leaps from fixed structures, rather than an aircraft, and uses a parachute to land.