Miracle escape for driver after car plunges off steep cliff on Isle of Man

Driver goes over the edge of Marine Drive, Port Soderick, Isle of Man

The red mini was retrieved after the near-death plunge (Douglas Coastguard / SWNS)

A driver was lucky to escape with minor injuries after her car plunged off a steep cliff on the Isle of Man.

Emergency services carried out a three-hour rescue after the woman drove her red Mini Cooper over the edge of Marine Drive, Port Soderick, on the east coast, at about 11.15pm on Thursday. The driver, a local resident, was the only person in the car, police said.

She managed to climb out of the car herself but required help getting back to the road above, which links Douglas with Port Soderick. While it is not clear how far the car dropped, at points along the route the cliff is 300ft high.

Woman escaped with minor injuries (Douglas Coastguard / SWNS)

Fire crews from Douglas Station were dispatched to carry out the rescue mission. They worked with Douglas Coastguard to set up a rescue system and the driver was taken to hospital where she was treated for non-threatening injuries.

Have you had a lucky escape from a car accident? E-mail matt.mathers@independent.co.uk

Marine Drive is a 4.2-mile long road built into the side of a cliff between Douglas and Port Soderick. Pictures from the scene appear to show that there are no barriers on the part of the road where the car went over the edge.

Dramatic pictures from the daring three-hour long rescue show the car stuck on the cliff while another photo shows the vehicle in mid-air as it was lifted to safety by a crane.

A spokesperson for Isle of Man Fire and Rescue Service said: “On arrival the officer in charge confirmed a car had left the road and was situated above the water line at the bottom of the cliff.

“The single occupant of the vehicle had self-extricated but required assistance from the emergency services to get to a place of safety.”

Emergency services launch three-hour mission to recover car (Douglas Coastguard / SWNS)

The spokesperson added: “Fire crews and Coastguard worked together to set up a rescue system for casualty recovery.”

Fire crews and coastguard remained in attendance for three hours to assist in the recovery of the vehicle.

Locals said the driver was lucky to be alive and congratulated emergency services for completing the rescue.

Locals said the driver was “lucky” to be alive and congratulated emergency services for completing the rescue. (Douglas Coastguard / SWNS)

“That was a lucky escape! Well done guys!” one wrote on Facebook. Another said: “Well done to all the emergency services, fabulous job as always.”

A third said: “Great teamwork. Well done” while another questioned why “is this happening so regularly”.