A 12-year-old Australian athlete who planned to start the new year by jumping off a popular cliff has regretted her action and is now urging all thrill-seekers to think twice after breaking both her legs.
“I've jumped off cliffs before and it was really fun. I won't do it again,” 12-year-old Sarah Jacka told 9 News on Wednesday from her hospital bed at the Royal Children's Hospital in Victoria, Australia.
On January 1, the young girl jumped into the water from a popular cliff on Victoria's Mornington Peninsula in front of her father Chris Jacka's camera to film the athlete in full jump.
However, when she returned to the surface, it was not cries of victory, but cries for help that arose when the young girl had broken both legs and an ankle when she hit the ground, just at low tide.
“I thought I was paralyzed. I couldn't feel my legs at all,” she continued to Australian media.
A young elite athlete has told how she thought she was paralyzed after breaking both her legs while jumping off a popular cliff on Mount Martha.
12-year-old Sarah Jacka joins lifeguards and the police to warn other adventure seekers of the dangers. @NearyTy_9 #9News pic.twitter.com/yzxQxZ6Z62
— 9News Melbourne (@9NewsMelb) January 10, 2024
It was the third serious accident to occur at the popular spot in less than a week, forcing authorities to warn adventure seekers and tourists to stop these activities, which can be very dangerous.
The young girl and her father decided to join their voices to deliver the message.
“It was heartbreaking. She said she couldn't feel her legs, so I was afraid she had broken her back […] “It's not worth the injury, it's not worth the risk for that 30 seconds of adrenaline,” Chris Jacka told 9 News.
Especially because these locations are often “complex” in terms of rescue, emphasized Chris Quinn, one of the Mount Martha Rescue Club volunteers. In this case, rescuers have to use a crane to rescue the injured from the water without putting themselves in danger.
“That is one of our challenges. We have to send our most experienced members there and that then diverts our resources away from the beach,” he added to Australian media.