Incident reports

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February 2021

4 incidents
mountain rescue volunteer fall Lake District Serious incident

A Patterdale Mountain Rescue volunteer in his 60s suffered serious injuries after falling 500 feet whilst responding to reports of a camper with chest pains at Red Screes above Kirkstone Pass. The volunteer was airlifted to hospital in serious condition with significant injuries, whilst the ill camper was evacuated by road ambulance. Two campers were subsequently fined £200 each for breaching lockdown regulations.

Outcome: volunteer airlifted to hospital with serious injuries; ill camper evacuated by road ambulance

stranded walkers Southern Uplands

Tweed Valley Mountain Rescue Team assisted two walkers stranded in the North Pentland Hills near Edinburgh on Saturday evening due to deep snowdrifts. The team's standard vehicle could not progress through the snow, and the Scottish Ambulance Service's 'Wolverine' all-terrain vehicle was called to complete the evacuation.

Outcome: two walkers evacuated with assistance from Wolverine vehicle

mountain rescuer fall Lake District Serious incident

A Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team volunteer who suffered a serious fall while responding to a callout in February 2021 died on 4 September 2023 from pneumonia and chest infection. Chris Lewis fell 500ft on Red Screes above Kirkstone Pass whilst assisting wild campers, sustaining multiple facial fractures and severe spinal damage that left him wheelchair-dependent. Despite his injuries, he continued to support mountain rescue operations and was recognised for his service to the community.

Outcome: casualty evacuated to hospital; died from infection two years later

fallen climber Peak District Serious incident

A man fell approximately 200 feet from the Trinnacles rock formation on Saddleworth Moor in February 2021 after fainting while posing for photographs. He sustained multiple fractures including a fractured skull and internal bleeding, and was rescued by Oldham Mountain Rescue Team and Yorkshire Air Ambulance. After months of intensive hospital care and rehabilitation, he made a full recovery and is now fundraising for the rescue services that assisted him.

Outcome: rescued by helicopter and ground team, evacuated to hospital, made full recovery after months of rehabilitation

January 2021

7 incidents

Old Man of Storr

Sledging Accident Skye

Mountain rescue teams were called out after reports that an individual had seriously injured themselves while sledging near the Old Man of Storr. The attending team was able to administer pain relief and immobilise the casualty before they were airlifted to a hospital in Glasgow.

Outcome: Transported by air

Stocksbridge / Bolsterstone

Fall/Injury Peak District

The team responded to two callouts on Sunday, 31st January. The first involved assisting with a fall near Stocksbridge resulting in a lower leg injury. The second incident occurred in Bolsterstone following a fall from a horse, which resulted in multiple injuries requiring air ambulance assistance.

Outcome: Casualties were treated and transferred to appropriate medical services.

mountain above Aberaman, Aberdare

hypothermia exposure Brecon Beacons

A man was rescued from a mountain above Aberdare after spending the night in sub-zero temperatures unable to raise the alarm. A passer-by alerted emergency services, and a joint operation involving South Wales Police, Central Beacons Mountain Rescue, and the Welsh Ambulance Service brought him to safety. He was treated for prolonged hypothermia.

Outcome: rescued and treated for prolonged hypothermia, evacuated by stretcher to ambulance

Black Hill

Lost Person/Hypothermia Peak District

A mountain biker became disoriented on Black Hill and called for assistance. Due to the cold, the casualty was treated with warmth and food before being safely walked back to a car park.

Outcome: Safe recovery

Scafell

Search and Rescue Lake District

A search operation was conducted for an overdue father and son on Scafell. The rescue effort involved multiple personnel over several hours.

Outcome: Overdue persons located/assisted

West Lomond (Craigmead area)

Fall/Injury Highlands

Mountain rescue teams were called out to assist with the rescue of a walker who had fallen in the Craigmead area of West Lomond. The injured individual was successfully moved off the hill using specialized equipment and subsequently transferred to hospital.

Outcome: Transported to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries

December 2020

5 incidents

Mourne Mountains

multiple incidents: unwell walker, walkers in difficulty, lower leg injury Northern Ireland

Mourne Mountain Rescue Team attended five separate incidents on Wednesday, including three walkers airlifted by rescue helicopter from Slieve Donard. Additional incidents involved walkers in difficulty on Slieve Binnian and a walker with a lower leg injury in the Glen River area, all attributed by the team to inadequate preparation for winter conditions.

Outcome: three airlifted by helicopter, walkers assisted or handed to NIAS

Caerketton Hill, Pentland Hills

slip on icy ground, broken ankle Southern Uplands

A woman suffered a broken ankle after slipping on ice near the summit of Caerketton Hill in the Pentland Hills on 29 December 2020. More than 35 mountain rescue and firefighters attended in severe winter conditions with wind chill of minus 10°C. She was evacuated by helicopter after rescue teams determined that a stretcher-based descent would have taken too long.

Outcome: evacuated by helicopter, recovering from broken ankle

Dale Dyke Reservoir

Injury (Ankle) Peak District

The team was called out on Sunday, 27th December, to assist neighbouring Edale Mountain Rescue Team with an injured walker at Dale Dyke Reservoir. The individual slipped on muddy ground, sustaining an ankle injury that prevented them from bearing weight. They were treated on-scene and prepared for a stretcher carry back to the road head.

Outcome: Transported from scene to hospital

Sandhurst Lane, Gloucester

flood evacuation South West

A resident in Gloucester was evacuated from their flooded home on Sandhurst Lane by the SARA Sharpness lifeboat team during flooding caused by the River Severn. The rescue was completed at 7:36 am on 26 December, with the resident safely removed from the property as water from the swollen river inundated the residential area.

Outcome: resident evacuated by lifeboat

Crompton Moor

injured walker Peak District

A woman slipped and injured her ankle while walking on Crompton Moor on Saturday. Oldham Mountain Rescue Team and North West Ambulance Service paramedics jointly provided medical care, packaged the casualty on a stretcher, and transported her to hospital. The team was engaged for two hours and sixteen minutes.

Outcome: casualty evacuated to hospital by ambulance

November 2020

3 incidents

Pillar

walkers injured in fall Lake District Serious incident

Two walkers suffered head and back injuries after falling approximately 50 feet while descending Pillar in the Lake District on Sunday 29 November. A trio of walkers became disorientated during descent, with two sustaining significant injuries in what Cockermouth Mountain Rescue Team described as a complicated six-hour operation involving 22 team members, a coastguard helicopter, and ambulance services.

Outcome: both casualties evacuated by helicopter and road ambulance to hospital

Doncaster

Missing Person Search Peak District

The team was called out by South Yorkshire Police to conduct a search for a 25-year-old male who was reported missing from the Doncaster area. Searches were carried out throughout the day with assistance from other rescue groups and search dogs, but the individual remained unlocated at the time of writing.

Outcome: Unsuccessful (at time of report)

October 2020

5 incidents

Beinn Dearg, Wester Ross

benighted walker Highlands

A walker became disoriented and benighted while completing the Beinn Dearg four Munros circuit in Wester Ross, spending a night out in poor conditions. She raised the alarm early the following morning, triggering a search involving Dundonnell Mountain Rescue Team, SARDA, and a coastguard helicopter; she was located and recovered safely.

Outcome: located by helicopter and driven to Inverness to recover

Slieve Donard

injured walker Northern Ireland Serious incident

Rescue teams responded to Slieve Donard after a walker sustained head injuries from a fall on the mountain. The casualty was treated for head injuries during the rescue operation.

Outcome: casualty evacuated with head injuries

medical emergency Northern Ireland Serious incident

A walker collapsed and died while in the Mourne Mountains near Windy Gap on Saturday afternoon. The Mourne Mountain Rescue Team attended, and despite the efforts of his walking companion, nearby walkers, and the NI Air Ambulance, the man was pronounced deceased at the scene. The team recovered the deceased and transferred them to undertakers.

Outcome: deceased at scene

Goldthorpe

Missing Person Search Peak District

The team was called out late last night to assist South Yorkshire Police in searching for a vulnerable missing person in the Goldthorpe area. After conducting searches across several areas over a period of six and a half hours, the individual's whereabouts remain unknown, and police investigations are ongoing.

Outcome: Unresolved/Ongoing Investigation

sewage-related parasitic infection South West

A lifeboat volunteer and training manager contracted giardiasis, a parasitic infection linked to sewage, after spending two hours in the River Severn during a training exercise in October 2020. He spent over three weeks unwell, including multiple hospital admissions, and investigators determined an 80% probability the infection came from human sewage contamination in the river.

Outcome: casualty hospitalised for three-and-a-half weeks, recovered