TILLER -- A 50-foot, head-first tumble off a steep mountainside in the Tiller Complex fires sent a firefighting soldier on a helicopter flight to a Medford-area hospital Tuesday.

Sgt. Scott Urban, 25, with Battery A, 1st Battalion, 5th Field Artillery of Ft. Riley, Kan., abruptly ended a tour of duty in Douglas County with a slip and long fall that was stopped short of a potentially bad end by the trunk of a fallen tree, fire officials said.

"His doctor says Sgt. Urban is one lucky guy," said Capt. Sherri Reed, spokeswoman for Task Force Destroyer, the 540-soldier strong firefighting contingent. "He slipped in loose gravel and ash on a nearly 70-degree slope. He is in stable condition."

He suffered bumps, bruises and muscle strain, Reed said.

Urban was part of mop-up operations on the Little Boy and Big Bend fires, located about 25 miles east of Tiller near the Rogue-Umpqua Divide Wilderness Area.

The rest of Urban's unit will ship out Friday, ending a 14-day assignment on the Tiller Complex. Despite the mishap, officers with Task Force Destroyer say it's been a good experience.

"The soldiers have gotten to see a different part of the country and learn about firefighting," said Maj. John Cotton while on a fire line visit. "For a lot of them it is their first time in the mountains. Now, it's back to training at Ft. Riley."