Imagine being stuck on a cliff, alone in the dark, when a voice suddenly comes floating down from the sky… A young hiker trapped high above Newlands wondered whether he was hallucinating when a drone appeared and told him that help was on the way!
Cape Town, South Africa (08 September 2026) – That reassuring little message came in the middle of a huge overnight effort by Wilderness Search And Rescue (WSAR), which spent 14 hours getting the young hiker safely off Table Mountain.
He had been exploring high above Newlands late on Sunday afternoon when he lost the trail and became disoriented. Eventually, he found himself stranded on a steep cliff with nowhere safe to go – forwards or backwards.
His phone battery was running low, daylight was disappearing, and he made the decision to call for help before things got worse. From there, a rather big rescue operation began unfolding around one person stuck high on the mountain.
Specialist rope rescuers were deployed from the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway’s upper station and began making their way towards him through steep, exposed terrain.
The Western Cape Government Health and Wellness EMS Drone Unit joined the operation from above. Its aerial view helped rescuers locate the hiker and work out the safest way towards him.
And then came the voice…
While the rope teams were still making their way to the top of the cliff, the drone was used to speak directly to the hiker and let him know rescuers were coming.
“The drone also provided some much-needed reassurance. While the rescue teams were making their way towards the top of the cliff, it was used to communicate directly with the hiker, letting him know that help was on its way. After being alone on the mountain in the darkness, hearing a voice coming from a drone was a somewhat surreal experience, and he later said he briefly wondered if he was hallucinating. Fortunately, the voice was very real, and it was telling him that the rescue team was on its way.” the WSAR shares.
Once rescuers reached the top of the cliff, they set up a rope system and a small technical team abseiled nearly 200 metres down to him.
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The rescue teams stayed behind with a mountain’s worth of packing up to do. The rope systems had to be dismantled and carried back before the final rescuers returned to the upper cable station. Their ride down was the first cable car of the morning.
By shortly after 07:00 on Monday, everyone was safely off the mountain.
The overnight operation brought together teams from the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway, SANParks – Table Mountain National Park, Western Cape Government Health and Wellness EMS and its Drone Unit, Delta Search & Rescue, Mountain Club of SA – Search And Rescue, SARZA – Western Cape and Trail Search and Rescue.
WSAR also shared one important detail from the story that is worth keeping in mind on your own next hike – the young man called while he still could.
Hikers are encouraged to know their route, carry enough water, head out with a charged phone and let someone know where they are going. And if you become lost or reach terrain you cannot safely continue through, calling early gives rescue teams more to work with before the situation becomes worse.
The Wilderness Search And Rescue emergency number is 021 937 0300.
As strange as that voice from the sky must have sounded on Sunday night, it carried a unexpected comforting message that people knew where he was, and they were coming.
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