Aurora man airlifted after falling from tree stand

Aurora, IN — Indiana Conservation Officers are investigating a fall from elevated hunting equipment that occurred Monday afternoon.

At approximately 1:45 pm, responders were dispatched to the 11000 block of North Hogan Road near Aurora, regarding a hunter who fell approximately 23 feet while either attempting to hang or remove his elevated tree stand.

Louis Gehring, 60, Aurora, was airlifted from the scene to the University of Cincinnati Hospital. Gehring sustained severe injuries to both legs along with possible internal injuries. The exact cause of the fall is still under investigation. Gehring was not wearing a full-body harness at the time of the fall. Indiana Conservation Officers encourage all hunters to practice safe hunting and safely secure yourself when hunting from an elevated position. This marks the third hunting accident from an elevated stand inside Operational District 9 within a week. The other two falls occurred in Osgood and just south of Westport in Jennings County. 

Responding agencies included Indiana Conservation Officers, Dearborn County Sheriff’s Department, and Manchester Fire Department.