Hamilton firefighters rescued four people from the bottom of Webster Falls after a party became trapped in the gorge Sunday afternoon.

The initial call for a high-angle rope rescue at the Greensville-area falls came at 3:40 p.m. Navigating the rugged terrain, the crew pulled a woman to the top around 5:20 p.m., said fire department spokesperson Claudio Mostacci.

Hamilton EMS said her injuries were minor.

The trouble started when a man climbing out of the gorge above the woman slipped and fell onto her, causing her to plunge 20 feet into the gorge, Mostacci said.

That man, who wasn't injured, was the second person to be rescued, followed by another woman who wasn't hurt either, and a man whose shin was banged up.

The quadruple rope rescue wrapped up around 7:45 p.m. All of the wayward hikers were middle-aged.

Firefighters were "surprised" to see at least 12 others at the bottom of the falls. They declined to be guided out, opting to hike up on their own.

The rescues come amid public and political backlash against people ignoring safety warnings while climbing over barriers to access waterfalls in Hamilton.