A climber was airlifted to hospital after a fall in a quarry near Bath.

The man fell 25m (80ft) after completing his climb at Stoke Lane Quarry, injuring his spine. Rescuers said his fall was broken by a tree.

Ambulance personnel, fire crews and a helicopter from RAF Chivenor all helped rescue the man. He was winched from the scene and flown to the Royal United Hospital in Bath.

A spokesman for the ambulance service said his injuries were not life-threatening. He also sustained head and leg injuries in the fall.

RAF spokesman Alex Brown said the location of the climber, in the quarry bottom, made his rescue ‘tricky and technical’.