Firefighter Matthew Davis calls down to Taylor Sheldon as he puts on a safety harness.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Firefighters rescued a 21-year-old man Thursday night who became trapped in a gorge at Natural Bridge State Park.

Taylor Sheldon of North Adams had been swimming with friends at the park when the group headed back up toward where their car was parked at the Franklin Street gate. Sheldon, however, climbed up through a waterfall and became separated from the group, said Officer Kyle Cahoon.

The found him nearly an hour later stuck in the dark in the rushing water at the bottom of the 60-foot gorge. He couldn't make his way back down in the dark and couldn't get out from the top.

Firefighter Matthew Davis took the lead in the rescue as a member of the Western Massachusetts Regional Technical Rescue Team. Fire Director Stephen Meranti said the other firefighters were also trained in rope rescue at an operational level.

A harnessed Davis worked his way through the bushes at the top of the gorge down to spot where he could speak to Sheldon as other first-responders watched from the bridge over the chasm.

There was difficulty in communicating with Sheldon over the roar of the water and flashlights were used to help orient him toward Davis.

"Down in gorge, it's not conducive to sound to begin with plus the water, it amplifies and echoes in there," said Sgt. James Burdick.

Two cruisers were turned to put headlights on the area so the rescue team could see to gear up. Sheldon was dropped a harness to put on to aid in the rescue and a ladder was lowered down to him.

"You want to pick the safest way to pull him out of there and it really was by ladder," Meranti said. "You lower the ladder down and let him climb up ... if he was unconscious or anything like that we would have put him in a Stokes basket and use a really intricate hauling system get him out of there."

Sheldon was alert and conscious able to climb up the ladder. But he was chilled from standing in the water for nearly two hours.

He was, however, released to family after being checked out by emergency medical technicians.

"It worked great with the police officers here, the ambulance EMTs were right in with us," said Meranti. "Everybody worked well together."

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — A Williamstown man was transported to Berkshire Medical Center in Pittsfield on Tuesday evening after a two-vehicle collision on Curran Highway (Route 8) near Hodges Cross Road, police said.

Matthew Wilson, 24, was taken by North Adams Ambulance Service to Pittsfield after his motorcycle was struck by a dump truck driven by a New York man, according to Police Sgt. Jason Wood.

Wilson, who was aboard a 2015 Honda CBR, was traveling south, as was the 2000 Ford F450 driven by John Williams Jr. of Troy, N.Y., Wood said.

"[Williams] stated that he was looking to turn into Walmart," Wood said. "He missed that [right hand turn] and then made an abrupt left toward Hodges Cross Road, hitting the motorcycle, which at that point was roughly parallel.”

Williams initially was cited for an unsafe lane change, Wood said. After further investigation, he was arrested and charged with unlawful operation of a motor vehicle, operating with a suspended license in Massachusetts, failure to use care when turning and an unsafe lane change.

Williams was released later Tuesday evening by the Clerk of the Courts, Wood said.

Wood said police have yet to determine the owner of the Ford dump truck, which bore paper license plates from New York.

Both the truck and motorcycle were removed from the scene by Dean's Quality Auto and Truck.

The initial call reporting the accident was received by North Adams Police at 7:18 p.m., Wood said. The North Adams Fire Department and Adams Police Department assisted at the scene.

Mary Wilk giving her valedictory address in 2012.

CHESHIRE, Mass. — A Hoosac Valley High School valedictorian died Saturday, four days after being struck by an elderly driver while riding her bicycle in Rhode Island.

Mary E. Wilk, 22, was hit while riding along Route 1 near Jerry Brown Farm Road in South Kingstown, R.I., on July 26.  

According to South Kingstown Police, she was northbound on her bike when she was struck from behind by a car operated by 88-year-old Claire Archambault of South Kingstown.

She died at Rhode Island Hospital on Saturday, July 30, as the result of the injuries sustained from the crash.

Wilk, the daughter of Joseph and Nancy Wilk, was valedictorian of the Hoosac Valley class of 2012 and active in sports and clubs at the school. She was class president and member of the student council, and was involved in track, cross country and the Nordic ski teams, and basketball and soccer.

She graduated from the University of Vermont with a bachelor of science in microbiology and was currently a research assistant at Miriam Hospital in Providence, R.I.

Police say the accident is still under investigation and that drugs or alcohol were not a factor in the crash.

This is the second tragedy to strike Hoosac's class of 2012 in a week. Wilk's classmate Ethan Piaggi-Cornell was killed in a motor vehicle accident on Thursday on Route 8 in Adams.