A man was airlifted Wednesday morning with a head injury after he fell from more than 20 feet.

The man, described by medical responders as being in his 30s, fell in the Baby Island area of Freeland.

“We had a 30-ish-year-old male that had a 20-plus-foot-fall from a roof and suffered a head injury,” said Mike Cotton, deputy chief for South Whidbey Fire/EMS. “It was out towards the northern end of East Harbor Road on a side street out there in the Baby Island area.”

The incident occurred around 11:30 a.m. Cotton said the helicopter was on the ground around 11:35 and left with the patient around noon.

The fall occurred while the man was working on the roof of a residence. Cotton said he believed the man was a construction worker, although he couldn’t confirm.

Falls from these sort of heights can often spell bad news. According to Cotton, 50 percent of falls from over 12 feet high are fatal.

Medical responders used the area behind Payless Foods as a helicopter landing zone. From there, the patient was transported to Harborview Medical Center in Seattle.