AN ELDERLY woman was taken to hospital after hitting her head on rocks near Lyme Regis.

Paramedics, coastguards and a lifeboat crew all attended the incident, which happened at around 1pm on Sunday.

The Maritime and Coastguard Agency said it requested an ambulance to assist the woman, who hit her head on rocks near Black Ven cliff, between Lyme Regis and Charmouth.

A spokesman for South Western Ambulance service said: "A woman in her seventies had fallen on rocks and sustained head injuries, including a nasty laceration to her head.

"A first responder attended the scene along with an ambulance, which took her to Dorset County Hospital for treatment."

A spokesman for Lyme Regis RNLI said the lifeboat was also launched just before 1.30pm to assist coastguards.

They said two lifeboat crew members swam ashore to assist coastguards and paramedics.

West Bay Coastguard described the rescue as a 'long and arduous casualty recovery', adding: "The woman had been out fossil hunting for the afternoon with her family when she slipped and fell on rocks, sustaining a head injury.

"On arrival at Charmouth, the West Bay officers found that the woman was located about one kilometre up the beach, in between Lyme Regis and Charmouth underneath Black Ven.

"Once ready, she was transferred to the rescue stretcher, secured, then carried a short distance off the rocks to more even ground, where the wheel was fitted underneath the stretcher to make for a smoother journey.

"The woman was then wheeled as far as the terrain would allow before being detached, and the stretcher was then carried the remaining distance by the Coastguard Officers and RNLI crew."