College student tumbles 200 feet, seriously injured in Bucks County

A 22-year-old Bucks County Community College student plummeted down a rocky embankment behind the campus in Newtown earlier this afternoon and suffered serious injuries, according to an emergency responder.

The unidentified student was hanging out with other students at a popular spot behind the campus buildings along Swamp Road, Newtown Ambulance squad member Angela Marriott said. The hangout is marked by large boulders overlooking a steep 200 foot hill that ends at Neshaminy Creek below, she said.

The young man was making his way down a narrow path toward the creek when he lost his footing, grabbed for a small overhanging tree, then fell, Marriott said. He tumbled down the entire hill, she said.

"Missing a step, he grabbed a tree, but it bent and he fell," said Marriott, who along with EMT Colleen Blount treated the student at the scene shortly after 2 p.m. "It's pretty much rock and dirt the whole way down."

The injured man remained conscious as Marriott and Blount treated him, then escorted him across the creek in a raft. On the other side, a medical helicopter flew him to Einstein Medical Center in Philaldelphia, Marriot said.

He suffered "multiple injuries" to his face and body, she said, but did not know his condition a couple hours later.