Westpac crew chief Pete Cummings said the 33-year-old man was setting up at his favourite fishing spot about 3pm on Monday when he slipped down a slope and broke his leg.

The man suffered compound fractures to his tibia and fibula and was stuck in an isolated section of the rock platform overnight.

The incident was not reported until yesterday and emergency services were notified about 10.30am.

Police established a command post near the town’s caravan park.

Mr Cummings said the rescue helicopter was doing a flyover of the scene about 1pm yesterday when the injured man was seen by a paramedic.

‘‘It was an unusual rescue in the sense that the man was lucky to be seen,’’ he said.

‘‘We were just flying overhead and expecting to see a body washing up against the rocks.

‘‘He must have heard the aircraft’s engines and sat up and started waving.’’

The helicopter lowered paramedics and a stretcher down to the scene a short time later.

The paramedics began treating the man but Mr Cummings said the Westpac helicopter was forced to land nearby because it was running low on fuel.

‘‘We spoke to the guys on the radio when they were ready for us and we hoisted them back up with the guy in the stretcher,’’ he said.

‘‘We had to land at the Port Macquarie airport and have an ambulance transport him to hospital because we were dry as a bone.’’

The man was driven the rest of the way to Port Macquarie Hospital where he was listed as being in a stable condition last night.

Mr Cummings said the Westpac crew, NSW Fire and Rescue, ambulance officers, police and State Emergency Services volunteers worked well together to ensure the man’s rescue.

‘‘It was a job well done,’’ he said.

‘‘The guys did really well.’’