SACO — On Tuesday at about 12:30 p.m., both Saco and Biddeford firefighters and paramedics responded to a call of a man falling off the Black Bridge railroad trestle near Horrigan’s Court, which crosses the Saco River between Biddeford and Saco.

When emergency personnel responded, they saw a man had fallen about 30 or 40 feet from the bridge onto the ice below, said Biddeford Deputy Chief Kevin Duross.

The man, who was severely injured, appeared unconscious when they arrived, he said.

Emergency personnel donned ice rescue equipment and “quickly extricated the person from the ice,” said Duross. The entire rescue, from arrival to the time the man was put into an ambulance, took about a half hour.

A Saco ambulance took the injured man to Southern Maine Health Center in Biddeford.

Due to privacy laws, the man’s name and extent of his injuries could not be released, said Duross. He did say the man appeared to be in his 50s and had multiple systems injuries.

At this point, said Duross, it’s unknown how the man fell.

“My suggestion,” said Duross, is that people “stay clear of that area. There are too many tragic incidents.”

On Aug. 9, 2012, Darrell L. Hoerl, 39, of Biddeford, died after jumping from the Black Bridge railroad trestle.

Biddeford Deputy Police Chief JoAnne Fisk agreed that the area is “dangerous.” In addition, she said, the bridge is railroad property, and people who walk there are trespassing.

— Staff Writer Dina Mendros can be contacted at 282-1535, ext. 324 or dmendros@journaltribune.com.