"He was very lucky. If he kept going, he would have plunged 300 meters into the crater,” president of the Presidio Permanente Vesuvio told NBC News.
A Maryland man was rescued after he fell into the crater of Mount Vesuvius after taking a selfie, according to NBC News.
Twenty-three-year-old Philip Carroll was hiking a forbidden trail on the volcano, notoriously known for the A.D. 79 eruption that destroyed the Roman city of Pompeii and buried it in ash, with two family members on July 9.
"This family took another trail, closed to tourists, even if there was a small gate and 'no access' signs," Paolo Cappelli, the president of the Presidio Permanente Vesuvio told NBC News.
The family had reached the top of the volcano, over 4,000 feet high, when Carroll stopped to take a selfie.
“He tried to recover it, but slipped and slid a few meters into the crater. He managed to stop his fall, but at that point he was stuck," Cappelli told NBC News.
"He was very lucky. If he kept going, he would have plunged 300 meters into the crater,” he told the outlet.
Carroll sustained wounds and scratches on his back and arms NBC News reported.
Carroll was taken into custody by the local Carabinieri police and it has not been made clear what charges he faces, Cappelli told NBC News.
Mount Vesuvius is still active, according to the Vesuvius National Park website. It last erupted in 1944.
The mountain's highest peak reaches 4,190 feet. The crater has a diameter of 1,476 feet and is 984 feet deep, the website adds.
