Llyn y Fan Fach. Photo: Stuart Wilding CC-BY-SA-2.0

A party of schoolchildren was rescued from a hillside after one of them had to be airlifted to hospital when he fell 30m (100ft).

A major six-hour operation was launched involving four mountain rescue teams in the Brecon Beacons national park in which the schoolboy suffered suspected spine and spleen injuries on Wednesday.

Central Beacons Mountain Rescue Team was alerted at 7.35pm to the incident at Llyn y Fan Fach in the West of the national park and they were joined in the operation by the Brecon and Longtown Mountain Rescue Teams, the Western Beacons Mountain Search and Rescue Team, along with handlers and animals from the Search and Rescue Dogs Association.

The boy had fallen from a path near the lake, south-east of Llanddeusant and the group of 24 children were caught in foul weather 600m (1,969ft) up in the Black Mountain.

Rob Jones of the Central Beacons team said there were bursts of heavy rain and blustery winds. “Brecon MRT were the first respondents to the casualty site and their medical professionals assessed the youngster for injuries,” he said.

“The 24-strong school-age party were in dire need of taking off the hill. They were duly escorted back to a gathering point.” An RAF Sea King helicopter from RMB Chivenor was called and Central Beacons MRT members stretchered the injured boy to the aircraft, which flew him to hospital for further treatment.

Mr Jones said: “On a weather-beaten hillside all party members were pleased to hear the aircraft approach.”

The other youths in the party were taken by waiting vehicles back to their school buses by the rescue teams.