Teenager survived 100ft fall from cliff only to then be bitten by an adder

A teenager from Tintagel in Cornwall survived a 100ft fall down a cliff, only to be bitten by a venomous snake. Brock Leach, 14, was on the clifftop at Trebarwith Strand on Sunday with his 16-year-old brother Josh when he slipped on some lichen and toppled off the cliff, rolling down and bouncing off outcroppings and rocks before landing on a ledge. Josh saw him fall and, despite being frightened and shocked himself, went to his brother's rescue, scrambling down the steep incline to reach Brock's side and, seeing he was still conscious and talking, helping him to a higher spot away from the incoming tide before telling him to stay put while he went to find help.

"I got him out of the way to a higher ledge because the sea was coming in," said Josh. "I said to stay there, but he wanted to go with me." Unknown to the boys, Brock had fractured his pelvis as well as suffering severe bruising, but they managed to make their way a little higher up the cliff before Brock suddenly felt a sharp pain in the hand he'd been using to help pull himself along. In another freak stroke of bad luck, the youngster had been bitten by an adder – the only venomous snake native to the UK. In pain, and feeling the adder venom take effect, Brock couldn't go any further so Josh scrabbled to the top of the cliff and flagged down some passers-by who called the emergency services.



Paramedics, lifeguards, coastguards and a helicopter from RAF Chivenor were on the scene within minutes and Brock was flown to the North Devon Hospital in Barnstaple where – his arm swollen to three times its normal size – he was given anti-venom for the adder bite and kept in overnight before being allowed home to recover. The boys' mother, Tracey, said: "I'm really proud of them both. They were both very, very scared. Josh saw his brother disappear and heard him scream as he went over the ledge. He didn't panic. He scrambled down and he made sure he told the people who came to help that it was an adder bite."

Tracey, 47, heard the rescue helicopter from their home in Trewarmett while she was speaking to her husband Dean, 43, online from Vietnam, where he is working as an ocean exploration scientist. She said it had momentarily crossed their minds to worry that their boys were somehow involved but she had looked out the window and seen two small figures in the distance watching the helicopter and thought they were Josh and Brock. She didn't know what had happened until Josh arrived home accompanied by a coastguard, saying: "Don't worry, mum. It's Brock, but he's okay." Their relieved mother said: "It could have been a lot worse. Brock took a real battering but his head and face are completely unscathed. He had a very lucky escape."