'I don't know if he would've survived the night:' Crews rescue injured paraglider near Lions Bay

A 30-year-old man who suffered serious injuries after crashing into dense, steep terrain near Lions Bay was rescued by helicopter Sunday.

Dale Weidman, a search manager with North Shore Rescue, was part of the team that was called in around 4:30 p.m. for reports that a man's parachute was tangled in the trees near Tunnel Bluffs.

"I don't know if he would've survived the night," Weidman told CTV News, noting that the temperature dropped to -6C.

"He was definitely in a dire predicament. Major injury to his left leg, broken femur."

With the help of night vision, the team was able to find and extract the man via helicopter so he could be transported to Lions Gate Hospital.

One Vancouver man whose has paraglided off Tunnel Bluffs describes the route as challenging and not meant for the faint of heart.

"It's a little frightening," said Jason Neufeld, who posted this video of his jump to YouTube. "There's no room for error."

He says it was his first and last jump in the area.

"I know other people that have jumped off that spot, same as in my video, and they also avoid it."

Weidman says the injured paraglider was able to use his smartphone to call for help.

At around the same time, crews were called to a hiker on the Howe Sound Crest Trail who suffered a back injury and was stranded between St. Marks and Mt. Strachan. Both rescues required hoist operations and featured members from both North Shore Rescue and Lions Bay Search and Rescue.

Despite a busy Sunday, crews say it's been a relatively quiet winter season so far.