Patterdale M o u n t a i n R e s c u e Te a m 53rd Annual Review ÂŁ2 Suggested Donation
Patterdale Mountain Rescue Te a m 53rd Annual Review
Officers AND Members
Hon. President Dave Freeborn MBE Team Leader Mike Blakey PMRA Chair Jacquie Freeborn PMRA Secretary Nigel Harling Treasurer Jane Newport Team Secretary Nigel Harling All contactable c/o Ogilvie House, Patterdale, Cumbria CA11 0PJ
All officers and members of the Team are volunteers. Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team (MRT) is the operational strand of rescuers out in the mountains and local community while the Patterdale Mountain Rescue Association (PMRA) is the registered charity that funds and plans for the longer team sustainability of the Team and its activities
Legal Advisor Trevor Price Arnison Heelis Solicitors, Penrith, Cumbria CA11 7AW Tel: 01768 862007
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Reporting Accountants Armstrong Watson Accountants, Birbeck House, Duke Street, Penrith CA11 7NA Tel: 01768 222030 PMRA Trustees Glenn Bridge, Ian Bruce, Martin Butcher, Syd Burns, Sean Duffy, Jacquie Freeborn Nigel Harling , Gillian Mininch (Dep. Chair), Will Ripley, Mike Rippon, Chris Sanderson OBE, Joan Watson, John Williams
Deputy Team Leaders
Sean Duffy Andy Peacock Mike Rippon
Training Officer
Alistair McCaig
Search Dog Handler
David Benson
Base Controller
Jacquie Freeborn
Equipment Officer
Glenn Bridge
Medical Officers
Dr John Ellerton Dr Andy McAlea Dr Theo Weston MBE
Fundraising Officer
Nigel Harling
Collecting Boxes
Ray Griffiths
Local Community Liaison
Sean Duffy and Rev Ian Griggs
Team members Helen Ash Neil Barrow David Benson Mike Blakey Glenn Bridge Anna Carlisle Mike Childs Martin Cotterell Matt Cox Tommy Cubby Chris Cunningham Eelco Docter Ed Docwra Sean Duffy John Ellerton Dan Farley Joe Finn Dave Freeborn Jacquie Freeborn Chris Gaskarth Berni Gilmartin Dave Gracie Ray Griffiths
Vet HGV driver HSE Manager Training Consultant Retired Outdoor Instructor Tech. Support Mgr. Energy Consultant Snowboard Instructor Company Director Legal Advisor Police Officer Outdoor Instructor Outdoor Centre Manager Doctor Data Administrator Teacher Film Producer B&B Proprietor Financial Advisor Outdoor Trainer Outdoor Instructor Retired Teacher
Ian Griggs Pete Hamilton Mike Hargreaves Nigel Harling Glen Hodges Tom Iredale Alistair McCaig Andy McAlea Gillian Mininch Andy Peacock Will Ripley Mike Rippon Stephen Shaw Stuart Smith Theo Weston
CofE Bishop (part-time) Retired Storeman and Coxswain Learning & Development Consultant Police Officer Outdoor Instructor Farmer Police Officer Doctor Recruitment Manager Firefighter MD Outward Bound Commerical Manager Outdoor Instructor Outdoor Trainer Doctor
Trainee Team members Peter Baker Retired Businessman Tony Recchia Retired Police Officer Mark Tomlinson Retired Police Officer Rob Wells Marquee Hire James Rutter Outdoor Instructor
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t has been a very positive year to be involved with the Team, in spite of several serious and, in some cases, very sad rescues during the year. These incidents have made big demands on our Team members and on everyone involved with the Team too. What keeps everyone going is the teamwork among members, the long-term investments in training and equipment and the active support of everyone involved behind the scenes.
Chair Four Ten
Thank you to everyone - Team members, families and friends, Trustees and supporters - for their work, dedication and commitment in 2017. I wrote last year about the works planned and ongoing in the Rescue Centre, taking the opportunity of significant funding
from Cumbria Community Foundation after the storms and flooding to build as much resilience into our Base as possible. We’ve made lots of changes, particularly upstairs, to make the best use of space and to anticipate future needs as much as we can. Our new, efficient kitchen area allows for catering for bigger rescues and searches when they occur and you’ll read in the coming pages about the large number of Team members and also colleagues from neighbouring teams and the paid emergency services who are often involved. Similarly, the extended main control room is now a better space to work in as it allows for everyone involved to use the space and see what is happening on big screens as well as
working at their own station, remote from the controller, when a bit of peace is required!
the extra swift water rescue kit can be stored properly along with bulky winter kit and other equipment.
We have also created a second training room alongside which can also be used as a silver command control area in multiagency incidents, building in the flexibility that is often needed. Finally upstairs, the communications area is now housed in a purpose-built room with all the servers and internet facilities that can be patched throughout the building as needs require. These services are an essential part of what we do and it is reassuring to know that they are now well clear of any future flood waters.
CCTV has been updated and now allows us to monitor the level of water in the adjoining beck, giving us prior warning of any potential floods as well as making the Base more secure.
Downstairs, large storage areas are now all complete and in use, which means that
Most of the work is now completed with just a few things to still finish off in the relatives’ room and some painting and outside work to be finished in the warmer and, let’s hope, drier weather. There are so many people to thank for all the help and support in completing all of this work and in getting us to where we are today. From Cubby Construction and Five
PIC OF NEW CONTROL Room
the huge team of electricians, builders, plasters, joiners, painters and all those who advised us and made this project run smoothly in parallel with the active work of the Team. Thanks also go to everyone at Cumbria Community Foundation for the financial help they gave to build in so much future resilience. As you can read in Nigel Harling’s Fundraising report, the Supporters’ Club has continued to grow and I am pleased to say that our fundraising group also continues to develop meaning that the Team is able to have a presence at more events in the area, taking along the trailer, talking to people about our work and raising public awareness and funds with less burden on active Team members. Thank you to all of them for this work
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behind the scenes which is very much appreciated by the Team and by all the Trustees.
I am very pleased she has agreed to stay on board and continue to help Nigel with the Supporters’ Club.
Mentioning Trustees, we have seen several changes on the committee during 2017.
Several other trustees stood down during 2017 - John Williams, Ian Bruce, Glenn Bridge, Mike Rippon and Will Ripley. I can’t thank them enough for all the support and time given over the years and I am glad to say that some are still staying involved in the Team.
We welcome Jane Newport as our new Treasurer and as a Trustee. I asked Jane to join us and become our new Treasurer knowing that this is a daunting task for someone to take on. She agreed and, with help and guidance from Joan Watson, our outgoing Treasurer, she is already doing a great job. You can read a bit more about Jane on page XX as well as a thank you to Joan. She has stood down after many years being our Treasurer and also supporting the Team at many events.
John Williams, who has been involved with MR for 40 years and was the previous Chair, has given so much to the Team and he has been a great guide to me as Chair too. I was very sorry to see him go but wish him and his wife, Isobel a happy retirement and the freedom to go on plenty of new adventures.
Ian Bruce had also been a Team member for many years and he came back to be a Trustee, most recently using his wealth of knowledge to guide us through the early stages of our refurbishment. Five new Trustees have joined us now so welcome to Ken Hardcastle, Angela Bell, Jane Newport, Helen Ash and Karen Hodges. This group includes an active Team member and some who are involved in our fundraising group. I recognise the time commitment that these joint roles involve but the cross links between Team, Trustees and supporters are very important and help us see things from different perspectives and make the right decisions.
Gillian who is my deputy and always there for me to spring thoughts off and help move us forward, thank you. This has been a big spending phase for the Team but one that I know will be of benefit now and in the future. We have a Rescue Centre and a Team that I know we can be proud of and one that is in a good state to face the future. Jacquie Freeborn, Chair of Trustees
To the remaining Trustees, especially Seven
TEAM LEADER
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t wasn’t the busiest year in terms of rescues – although busy enough at times - but it certainly was in terms of Base developments. Thanks to the hard work of Cubby’s Construction, and generous donations from our supporters, we successfully redesigned and extended the first floor of Base to create a new larger kitchen, control room and extra training room. In addition we relocated all our communications infrastructure from the ground floor to protect it in the event of future flooding. The new space is loved by all and has transformed our Base for the next 25 years, I hope! The most notable rescues of the year took place on the August Bank Holiday weekend, when one young family tragically lost their father following a fall from Striding Edge. Just 24 hours later, we were back out to rescue Robbo and his dog, in what was a very challenging and complicated rescue from almost
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the same place on Helvellyn. Robbo was very seriously injured but survived thanks to the tremendous team work between PMRT, the Great North Air Ambulance crew, and the Coastguard Helicopter from Prestwick. Robbo is making a remarkable recovery and regularly reminds us that he owes his life to all concerned. The equipment that we used to undertake that rescue is second to none, and is only made possible by the very generous donations we continue to receive from families, friends and supporters. Thank you. Ed Dowcra, one of our super keen Team members, was seriously injured whilst winter climbing in Penrith Mountain
Rescue Team’s area in December. We were called to assist with Ed’s rescue and I am pleased to report that Ed is making a steady recovery from his injuries. It’s always even more challenging when the rescue involves one of your own. Earlier in the year we undertook our first joint winter training with Cockermouth MRT in the Cairngorms. This was an excellent event in which we re-created a major avalanche exercise. We have plans for 2019 to extend this further and involve Keswick MRT as well. We also saw several new members train or re-validate as swiftwater rescue technician qualifications, ensuring we’re ready should the storms of 2015 ever be repeated. It was a proud year for the Team as Ray Griffiths became the Honorary President of MREW, our national umbrella organisation. Ray appears to be loving travelling and meeting teams right across
England and Wales and I firmly believe this is a match made in heaven! Finally, some thank yous. I would like to formally thank the Team’s deputies and officers who give so much behind the scenes to making the whole Team work on a day-to-day basis. Dave Freeborn (Honorary President) and Rob Brookes are continuing to work tirelessly to extend and improve our radio infrastructure to strengthen communications throughout our patch and their work does not go unnoticed. I would also like formally to thank our growing group of supporters who are increasingly doing more to keep the cogs turning as Team members’ lives get busier. It is all very much appreciated and I feel privileged to be part of such an amazing extended Team. I wish you all safe adventures in 2018! Mike Blakey, Team Leader Eleven
Equipment
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he job of Equipment Officer has grown dramatically over recent years, as the Team’s involvement in different areas of rescue has grown and so has the sheer volume and variety of equipment required. As a result, we’ve decided to introduce more posts to assist me in my role as Equipment Officer. Mike Childs is looking after our vehicles while Glenn Hodges and David Gracie are now responsible for our water resources. Pete Hamilton and Dave Freeborn are looking after the boat house, with Joe Finn assisting me in all other equipment and kit areas. Dave Freeborn, Eelco Doctor and others are continuing to do a great job with communications and everything to do with radios. My sincere thanks go to all of them for taking
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on these roles and helping the Team to function at an ever higher level. As mentioned in my report last year, the Team and its members invested a lot of time and money in developing our water capabilities and skills. This has resulted in approximately half the team now being qualified as Swift Water Rescue Technicians. With your generous support and a number of key grants, they also have access to the very best kit and equipment to carry out rescues in swift water and to assist in flooded areas. The decision to increase our fleet of rescue vehicles from three to four in the past year to 18 months has proved to be a good one. It has given us far more flexibility across our area of responsibility,
and also enabled us to take our educational and promotional trailer out and about to events much more. We have also upgraded our avalanche kits to match our increasing skills in this area and we have replaced all the rigging ropes and Team carabiners – a major undertaking but key to the safety of our members and the security of those that we rescue. The personal sacs we use in conjunction with carrying Team kit sacs on to the hill have also been upgraded. And, to complete a busy year on Team kit, members have also been issued with new heavy-weight winter trousers.
probationers to the Team during the year and they have all been issued with Team clothing and personal protection equipment (PPE). How are we able to achieve all of this? By the continuing generosity of you, our supporters! A big thank you to everyone who has donated, fundraised or supported the Team in any way this year. You enable us to do our job, giving those we go out to help the best possible outcome. Thank you!
Glenn Bridge, Equipment Officer
The final piece in the Equipment puzzle is that we welcomed four new Fiftheen
TRAINING
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here are three big commitments required of MR team members – call outs, training and fundraising – and we’re very lucky in Patterdale MRT that a lot of the latter is covered by our back up team of supporters and fundraisers. However, we probably make up for it in the demands of training! In the past year, Team members have updated their skills, refreshed their knowledge, taken exams in crucial areas such as Cas Care and also made the most of opportunities in our wider MR community to learn new techniques and extend their abilities with training courses organised on regional and national levels. Thank go to everyone who been involved
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in training or being trained – it all helps to make our job as Training Officers a bit easier. As well as the regular training sessions, members have attended Rigging for Rescue courses with other Lake District colleagues. These are specialist sessions that really build our confidence when we need to rig and lower casualties on ropes in precarious and often dangerous conditions. With a mix of initial, advanced and refresher workshops, we currently have eight Team members trained to a reassuring level of competence and confidence. In parallel with these courses, thanks go to the team at Lyon Equipment in Tebay for their training session on kit checking.
Every piece of climbing and anchoring kit that we use (and every rope) needs to be in top condition and it’s a big responsibility to ensure that this is the case. Glen Hodges and Joe Finn who did this training were really grateful for the support and we’d like to thank Lyon too. Off the crags and mountains, we’re one of many teams now all too aware of our important role in flood resilience. Grants and donations have enabled us to purchase the necessary kit but there’s also a big investment of time in swift water rescue training and we’ve now got eight Team members fully accredited and able to work effectively and safely if (or when) we’re next called on to help in flooded areas.
Looking ahead, the next key area for us is driver training. Driving safely but urgently to an emergency is probably one of the riskier things that we do so we aim to refresh our Team drivers’ skills every three years. It can be fun – especially any offroad parts – but it’s a big responsibility too so the training helps to keep us focused and aware of the safety issues. It’s the first time we’ve had two names at the end of this report and that’s probably indicative of the growth in demands for training and the range of approaches. For 2018, Tommy will be taking on the regular Team sessions, making sure we keep a range of skills up to date and Al will be focusing more on the training provided through LDSAMRA (our regional Lake District Association) and Mountain
Rescue England and Wales (MREW). It’s looking like another busy year ahead and thanks to all our supporters for enabling so much of this to happen and to all the friends and families of Team members for supporting them in this big time commitment. Thank you. Al McCaig and Tommy Cubby
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L MREW President
New national role for Ray Eighteen
ast summer, Team stalwart, Ray Griffiths, was elected President of Mountain Rescue England and Wales (MREW), the voluntary service’s national body. Since then, Ray has made it his mission to engage with as many ordinary team members as possible, helping with collections and visiting Bases as well as attending a Distinguished Service Award ceremony and meeting HRH The Duke of Cambridge, Patron of MREW, at a Land Rover event in Birmingham. Ray has currently visited five of the regional organisations and more than 10 of the teams across the country and is planning to visit many more in the year ahead.
How did you get involved in mountain rescue? Ray I first got involved back in 1976 when I moved to Cumbria to take on a teaching post at Ullswater Community College and also joined the Team. Since then, I’ve been a Deputy TL and Equipment Officer as well as working in the region and nationally in various roles. Mind you, I have memories of MR that go back well before my own involvement in Patterdale. I remember looking in awe at the kit stacked inside the door of Helvellyn YHA and watching a very impressive group going out, in about 1965 – that must have been one of the earliest Patterdale callouts and I began to wonder if I could do that? My own first experience was around
Easter 1967, I think, when I was called down from a climb in Cwm Idwal to assist the Ogwen team with the evacuation of two casualties, seriously hurt in a fall from the Devil’s Kitchen crags. With the early 1970s, teams became more structured, but it was still quite normal for someone like Sid Cross or George Fisher to walk into a climber’s pub and say: “You, You and You! Come on, we need your help. We have a call out!” That was quite common when I worked in Great Langdale! How has MR changed in those 40+ years? Ray In my early days, we worked on the 3Ps principle: When you find a casualty, 1) Pick them up,
2) Pack’em in, and 3) Proceed (to put it politely) off the fell. Everyone used their own equipment, apart from the stretcher, cas bag and lowering ropes, and we invented bits of kit to make the job easier. I can think of examples such as Squadron Leader Lester Davies’ Fell Bounder, The Little Dragon Hot Air Machine and my own contribution, the extended snake for easier belays. That sort of development eventually lead to the evolving stretcher designs by Peter Bell and Hamish McInnes that are still in use today.
And what has stayed the same? Ray The voluntary nature of MR is unchanged, of course, so there’s still a really strong thread of community service among everyone involved. I think MR is unique in the way that we need to work together as a cohesive team if we’re going to be successful in rescuing the people who need us. Whatever the terrain and the situation, we’re all in it together and need the range of skills and experience that only a team can bring.
Today’s teams are highly professional in their approach in so many areas: ropework, medical training and treatment, driving and fundraising - this list is endless and it keeps growing.
What are your ambitions for MR nationally for the coming decade? Ray I applaud the independence of our MR teams, but also see fabulous
opportunities when we work together and with our partner agencies. Other emergency services recognise our qualities and we must spread this knowledge to the public at large. It may be trite to say “So much more than mountains,” but we are certainly this across our communities. The increasing number of joint operations and the success of joint training can only improve our ability to provide the best service we can offer to people in need. However, the voluntary nature of our organisation is the essence of what we do and, while national standards of training and diligence are the optimum, I feel that they need to be recognised as best practice, not compulsory, if we’re
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going to maintain that “professional volunteers” ethos. The one personal aim I have is to encourage greater participation in all levels of MR. There’s so much that can be done behind the scenes by all and not just the willing few who seem to carry an unwieldy burden of the minutiae of tasks that go on behind the frontline of red jackets. Extending that teamwork to a bigger army of volunteers makes sense.
atterdale MRT is the first Lake District Mountain Rescue Team to have a dog handler with a qualified scent-specific trailing dog. Brock is a Lurcher, an unusual breed for a search dog but the skills for hunting fur and feather that Lurchers are renowned for have been found to come into their own for this specialist approach to searching for missing people.
A dog called
BROCK Benny with Brock at Base
“Brock is my second Lurcher to be a mountain rescue search dog,” says Team member David Benson (aka Benny), “but the first to use his skills in following a scent-specific trails. Basically, Brock is given an article of the missing person’s clothing and he will then hunt for that scent at the place where the individual was last seen before indicating the presence of a trail and following that trail,
hopefully to find the missing person safe and well.” Training has involved lots of scent discrimination work, following scent trails and plenty of rewards – usually time playing with his handler plus the bonus of sausages. This all reinforces the skills and creates a disciplined dog who is very much part of the Team and on call, not just in Cumbria, but wherever there is a need. “I’ve been a member of Patterdale MRT for just over three years now,” says Benny, “and hope that Brock and I will continue to be part of this Team for years to come.” Brock the Lurcher on the high fells in snow
Playing is part of Brock’s training – and part of the fun of being out in the snow
L Lesons from the military
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ooking back over the last year, we’re struck that there has been a gradual development in several different areas of the Team’s medical provision. The drivers for this change have been varied but the net result is that there has been an evolution in the Casualty Care that the Team provides. One of the drivers has been the learning that has come out of the military conflicts of the last 15 years. This has resulted in several changes in the Team’s approach. One is that, for the most recent casualty care exams, we have needed to consider “Catastrophic Haemorrhage” ahead of “Airway” in the Safety ABC mantra by which we are taught to structure the assessment of every casualty we approach.
In the overwhelming majority of mountain rescue incidents, this will not turn out to alter our interventions but at the scene of a road accident or similar, it might change our actions. Another change which has come from the military relates to the specialist dressings which we now carry. These include chest seals for open chest injuries which are designed to adhere to dirty, wet skin; “smart” haemostatic dressings which actively aid the blood clotting process; and bandages which are designed not to instantly unroll when you accidently let go of the end on a steep windy hillside! Technology has also played its part in the changes to Team medical kit over the last year. This autumn, the Team invested in a set of end tidal carbon dioxide
(ETCO2) monitors. We looked at these three years ago when we replaced our integrated patient monitoring devices - which provide ECG traces (familiar from the opening credits of Casualty), blood pressure, pulse and blood oxygen concentration. At that time there was nothing suitable on the market; this year we were able to obtain matchbox size devices that run on two AAA batteries and monitor every breath that a casualty takes. If a casualty stops breathing, it takes several minutes before the blood oxygen concentration begins to fall but the ETCO2 meter will alarm “on the next breath” – allowing the correction of a problem before it has an impact on the wellbeing of the casualty. Finding thermometers that conveniently
and reliably tell us how cold casualties are in a dark, cold, wind buffeted shelter is another problem that we have historically struggled with but we now have a set of tympanic thermometers that so far seem to be doing the job (though you still need to “pre-warm” them down the front of your jacket for 20 minutes on the walk in!). A third development driver has been the trickle dow” effect from changes in the medical profession over the last decade or so around clinical governance and the use of evidence-based medicine. We would like to think that this has not fundamentally changed the quality of the care we provide, but the development of standard operating procedures and the recording of training and our activity means that we can now evidence that we
are providing safe and appropriate care. Of course, this progress and ensuring that the Team continues to conform to best practice comes at a cost and would not be possible without the generosity of our supporters and donors. On behalf of the Team and the casualties we aim to assist, thank you to all those who give money and time. We’d also like to thank Team members for their commitment to training in the whole area of medical care in the past year. Dan Farley and Dr Andy McAlea
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2017 INCIDENTS Total number of incidents
73 66 in 2016 92 in 2015 + flood related 85 in 2014 72 in 2013 53 in 2012
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Rescue Search Fatality Animal
Incident Report 2017
01 01/01/2017 13:20 Rescue Grisedale A woman injured her ankle whilst walking in Grisedale. The Team went to her aid and stretchered her back to a waiting Land Rover. She was transferred to the Rescue Centre and then to an ambulance. 02 01/02/2017 12:42 Animal Aira Force The Team was called by Cumbria Police to go to the aid of a collie cross dog that had fallen into the beck at Aira Force.
When Team members arrived, the dog was on a ledge just above the flowing water. A Team member abseiled down, made friends with the stressed dog and, with the aid of a rope system controlled by the other Team members, extricated the animal to safety. The rescue lasted 90 minutes and was attended by 14 Team members. 03 16/01/2017 00:53 Search Red Pitts The Team was called by Cumbria Police to assist in the search for a man who had gone missing from his home in the area. As the Team was beginning to coordinate a search plan, the man was located safe and well, albeit a little damp. The incident was attended by 12 members of the Team and lasted approximately two hours.
04 06/03/2017 14:35 Rescue Gowbarrow The Team was called to assist a 60-yearold woman who had slipped and injured her ankle while walking on Kirksty Brow above Ullswater. The Team walked to the casualty site and located her. She was given analgesia for her pain and treated for a suspected fracture dislocation of the lower leg. The woman was stretchered from the fell and driven in a Team ambulance to Dockray, where she was transferred to an ambulance and onto Cumberland Infirmary Carlisle. Twelve Team volunteers attended the rescue together with nine colleagues from Penrith MRT.
05 24/03/2017 13:31 Rescue Aira Force The Team was called to assist a 60-yearold woman who had slipped and injured her ankle while out walking at Aira Force. She was assessed and a suspected fractured ankle was diagnosed. The ankle was dressed and placed within a vacuum splint and she was transferred by stretcher to an ambulance and taken to the Cumberland Infirmary Carlisle. The rescue was attended by seven Team members and lasted approximately two hours. 06 15/04/2017 12:18 1st Aid Patterdale A 4-year-old child with a head injury was brought to the Rescue Centre by his family. The child had fallen down some
stairs and banged his head. He was examined by a Team doctor and referred to Penrith Minor Injury Unit for further assessment . 07 15/04/2017 16:45 Rescue Red Tarn footpath Two people approached the display trailer at Glenridding to inform the Team that a man had slipped and injured his ankle on the Glenridding path leading to Red Tarn. The Team attended, assessed the man’s injuries and splinted his leg before placing him on a stretcher and fording the Glenridding Beck. A rope system was employed to haul the stretcher to a waiting Land Rover ambulance on the opposite side of the valley. The injured man, who was from Twickenham, was examined at the Rescue Twenty three
Centre and referred to Cumberland Infirmary Carlisle for further treatment. 08 17/04/2017 15:40 Rescue Hallin Fell The Team had a busy afternoon with two callouts. The first incident related to a 10-year-old boy who had slipped while descending Hallin Fell. He was treated on the fell for a dislocated knee before being stretchered to the valley bottom and then onwards to hospital. 09 17/04/2017 19:49 Rescue Dowthwaite Head The second incident was for a 60-yearold man who had fallen and fractured his ankle near Dowthwaite Head. He was initially treated and evacuated by fellow walkers before the Team was called. He Twenty four
was then treated by the Team Doctor and stretchered from the fell before being transferred to hospital. The Team was assisted by colleagues from Penrith MRT and a visiting member of Icelandic Search and Rescue. 10 18/04/2017 17:20 Rescue Howtown Bay The Team was alerted by Coastguard to a boat in difficulty near Howtown on Ullswater. It had run aground and was taking on water with two people on board. The Team responded and was about to launch its boat, Patrick Scotty, when it was stood down by the Police as another boat had the first under tow and was taking it to Pooley Bridge.
11 22/04/2017 17:09 Animal Kirkstone Pass The Team was asked to recover a sheep that had become stuck on a narrow ledge. Two Team members were lowered down and were able to lower the sheep to the valley bottom safely. 12 25/04/2017 11:19 Rescue Hallin Hag wood The Team was called out to an 83-yearold woman who had fallen 12 metres from the lake footpath down towards Ullswater. The Team responded with all four rescue vehicles and launched their boat, Patrick Scotty. North West Ambulance Service also responded and local farmers gave significant help. The woman was treated at the scene for head, neck, chest and pelvic injuries before a difficult extrication onto the rescue boat
and the subsequent transfer to a waiting Air Ambulance. 13 29/04/2017 St Sunday Crag
16:04
Rescue
A 69-year-old man fell approximately 300 feet from St Sunday Crag. He suffered serious head injuries, possible chest trauma, a broken leg and wrist. The man was treated on scene by the Team’s
doctor, a doctor and paramedic from the Great North Air Ambulance and other Team members before stretcher evacuation to the valley bottom and the onward flight to RVI Hospital in Newcastle. 14 01/05/2017 16:00 Rescue Pasture Bottom The Team was called out by Cumbria Police to assist a 50-year-old woman who had slipped and injured her ankle while out walking in Pasture Bottom, near Ullswater. The woman was assessed and a suspected fractured ankle diagnosed so she was provided with pain relief and the ankle was dressed and placed in a vacuum splint. The woman was transferred by stretcher to the Team Land Rover and driven to the Rescue Centre
before being transported by ambulance to the Cumberland Infirmary Carlisle for further treatment. The rescue was attended by 14 Team members and lasted approximately 2.5 hours. 15 07/05/2017 14:39 Rescue Striding Edge The Team was called to assist a woman who had fallen 30 feet from Striding Edge, suffering multiple injuries. Due to the nature of the reported injuries – head, facial, chest, abdominal, shoulder and arm - the Team requested the assistance of a Coastguard helicopter, which was immediately scrambled from Caernarfon. North West Air Ambulance also attended the incident and provided medical support on scene. The casualty was treated on scene before being winched Twenty five
into the Coastguard rescue helicopter and taken to Patterdale playing field for transfer to the Air Ambulance and onward transport to hospital. The incident was attended by eight Patterdale and 12 Penrith MRT members and lasted three hours. 16 07/05/2017 15:47 Rescue Swarthbeck Gill While dealing with an incident on Striding Edge, the Team was called to assist with the rescue of a 30-year-old woman who had broken her ankle on the other side of the valley. Penrith Mountain Rescue Team were already on scene and able to provide assistance. The Coastguard Rescue helicopter that had just evacuated the casualty from Helvellyn was then tasked to collect the second casualty and Twenty six
transfer her to hospital. 17 21/05/2017 11:38 Fatality Grisedale Tarn A female walker was found collapsed at Grisedale by a runner. Unfortunately, the woman had suffered from a serious medical condition and was found dead. 18 25/05/2017 22:43 Rescue Greenside Mines The Team was called by Cumbria Police to go to the aid of a 47-year-old man who had become stuck on a ledge overlooking the village of Glenridding. His exact location was vague until the local Fire Brigade reported that they had spotted a distressed man above Greenside Mines. The Team reached his location over difficult terrain, ensured
the man was safe and uninjured and then proceeded to rig a rope system to enable him to descend the fell. This was a challenging rescue and involved 11 Team members for 3.5 hours. 19 02/06/2017 06:11 Rescue Priest’s Hole, Dove Crag The Team was alerted by Cumbria Police to a couple who were stuck at the Priest’s Hole on Dove Crag, with the woman suffering from hypothermia. Contact was quickly established with the informant and, with an update on their condition and location, Team members were deployed. The couple were assessed at the scene and provided with dry clothing, a warm drink and food and then escorted down from the crag. Attended by six volunteers and lasted 4.5 hours.
20 11/06/2017 12:53 Rescue Grisedale Team members were called to assist a 68-year-old woman from Guernsey who had slipped and sustained a suspected fractured ankle. The woman, who was walking the Coast to Coast route with her husband, was treated on scene near to Ruthwaite Lodge in Grisedale. The woman was then stretchered to a Team Land Rover ambulance and driven back to Base for onward transfer to hospital. The rescue involved thirteen Team members and a member of Bowland Pennine MRT for three hours. 21 15/06/2017 10:47 Rescue Place Fell Cumbria Police contacted the Team after a man reported hearing shouts on
Place Fell. It was believed to have been a shepherd so a callout with good intent. The Team did not respond. 22 22/06/2017 22:11 Search Helvellyn A group of four walkers was reported as overdue from a walk on Helvellyn. As the Team was making enquiries, the missing people turned up safe and well. 23 24/06/2017 09:57 Fatality Birkhouse Moor A 61-year-old man collapsed while undertaking a sponsored walk on Helvellyn. The man had suffered a cardiac arrest and was flown to hospital by the North West Air Ambulance but died.
24 25/06/2017 12:18 Rescue Priest’s Hole, Dove Crag Members of the Team were attending the local village fete when they were tasked to locate and rescue a 53-year-old man that had become lost on Dove Crag. The Team responded to the man who had been trying to locate the Priest Hole and they escorted him to safety. 25 26/06/2017 15:45 Rescue Heck Crag The Team was asked to rescue a 54-yearold woman who had slipped off the path towards Heck Crag, Bannerdale. The Team asked the Air Ambulance to assist in locating the casualty from the air and, once found, she was treated by the crew of the Air Ambulance for a damaged ankle. Due to the remote location and Twenty seven
long stretcher carry, Penrith MRT was asked to assist. The casualty was lowered from the fell and transferred to hospital for further treatment. 26 03/07/2017 22:32 Rescue Stand Crags The Team was called to search for a group of six students who had become lost and stuck on steep ground near Dove Crag during their Duke of Edinburgh expedition. The group was on a route from Great Langdale to Brotherswater when they lost the path just as darkness fell and they became stuck on steep ground. The Team located the group near Stand Crags and escorted them safely down to the valley bottom. Twenty eight
27 06/07/2017 15:12 Rescue Patterdale Common Cumbria Police called the Team to go to the aid of a Cumbrian woman who had fallen on Patterdale Common while walking up the Grisedale Valley towards the tarn. Six Team members went to her aid - she had a head injury and a suspected fractured wrist. The Team stretchered the casualty to the Team’s waiting Land Rover ambulance and then, once back at Base, transferred her to the NWAS land ambulance for onward transport to hospital. The rescue lasted two hours and involved eight Team members. 28 07/07/2017 22:27 Rescue Hartsop Dodd A dog walker, who was overdue, was
reported missing by his wife. While the Team was making enquiries, he turned up safe and well. 29 23//07/2017 15:20 Rescue Place Fell The Team was called to rescue a woman from the Stockport area who had injured her knee while descending from Place Fell. She was treated on scene and stretchered to a Land Rover ambulance in the valley. 30 23/07/2017 18:27 Rescue Striding Edge As the Team members were transporting the injured woman (incident 29), they received a second call out from Cumbria Police. Two walkers, who were both in their 20s, had become crag fast in bad
weather in the area known as the bad step on Striding Edge. Team members descended to their position on a small ledge and then lowered the couple, by rope, to safe ground.
crashed his hang glider at Wolf Crags, injuring his arm and hand. The man was transferred into the NWAS helicopter and transferred to hospital for further treatment.
31 24/07/2017 08:48 Rescue Dove Crag A young man who had been unable to find the Priest’s Hole the evening before, and who had spent the night on the mountain, became disorientated in the morning and descended the wrong way from the summit of Dove Crag. He fell into a gully and sustained minor injuries. After some confusion over his position, the Team Leader used the ‘Find my friends’ app on an Apple iPhone to see the injured man’s location on a satellite image. He was then able to work out a
33 24/07/2017 14:29 Rescue The Coombes The Team was tasked by NWAS to a man who was suffering chest pains at The Coombes, close to Howtown Hotel. The man was treated on scene and transferred by Team Land Rover to an ambulance at Pooley Bridge.
grid reference to send to the Team and two helicopters which were on route. The man was rescued shortly after, cold and wet but safe. 32 24/07/2017 12:20 Rescue Wolf Crags The Team assisted a man who had
34 30/07/2017 12:36 Rescue Ullswater The Team was alerted by NWAS to two people who were in the lake after their boat had capsized. As the Team Twenty nine
prepared to launch their rescue boat, the people had swum ashore and reported themselves as safe and well. 35 05/08/2017 00:27 Rescue Birkhouse Moor Team members were alerted to flashing lights and yelling from the top of Birkhouse Moor. The Team established contact with the reporting person who then confirmed it was a party descending and no assistance was required. The Team was stood down and no further action was taken. 36 06/08/2017 15:07 Rescue Helvellyn Two walkers came across a group of four people at the Helvellyn summit cross shelter who had become hypothermic. Thirty
They phoned Cumbria Police via 999 and the Team was tasked to this rescue. While Team members were ascending, another four people had stopped on the summit to offer assistance. Due to the deteriorating weather conditions and the number of people now on the summit who were rapidly becoming cold, the Team requested assistance from Keswick MRT and the Royal Air Force MRT from Leeming, who were training nearby. A Coastguard helicopter was also requested, but initially was unable to get to the casualty site because of the bad weather. The Team treated the four casualties on the hill for hypothermia before moving them further down the mountain to where the aircraft could get in and take them on board before flying them to hospital for further treatment.
37 09/08/2017 14:07 Rescue Lake path The Team received a call from Cumbria Police informing them of a young woman suffering from abdominal pains on the Ullswater Lake shore path. One of the Team’s medics performed an initial assessment before the woman was transported back to the Rescue Centre in Patterdale and onward transport to hospital. 38 16/08/2017 01:44 Search Ullswater The Team was called to assist Cumbria Police to search for a vessel on Ullswater. Two adults were reported to be intoxicated and arguing following a drinking session at a local hotel. They were in charge of two children and
there were concerns for their welfare. The vessel was located safely and the man was taken into custody. Maryport Coastguard kindly assisted. 39 16/08/2017 12:42 Rescue Place Fell The Team was called by Cumbria Police to locate a man who became lost on Place Fell, above Ullswater. As the Team began searching the key routes up towards the summit, the man confirmed he had relocated himself and was safe and well. 40 24/08/2017 13:39 Rescue Striding Edge The Team was alerted to reports of people lost on Striding Edge. After trying to contact the couple by mobile phone,
it appeared that there was no cause for concern and no further action was taken. 41 27/08/2017 11:24 Fatality Striding Edge The Team was called to rescue a 54-yearold man who was ascending Helvellyn via Striding Edge with his family when he slipped and fell over 200 metres. Several experienced mountaineers who were already in the area abseiled from Striding Edge to the man’s location and gave first aid. The Air Ambulance was also scrambled but, due to the bad weather, they had to abort their attempt to fly to the casualty’s location. Because of the seriousness of the incident and hoping for a break in the weather a larger Coastguard helicopter was requested from Prestwick.
Unfortunately, the bad weather remained and the Coastguard helicopter was unable to reach the casualty’s location and had to abort its attempt. All four of the Team’s Land Rovers responded along with members of Penrith MRT and Team members ascended the rough and steep terrain of Striding Edge to reach the casualty. The Team provided immediate medical care, but sadly the man died at the scene. 42 27/08/2017 13:45 Rescue Patterdale A mountain biker arrived at Base with a deep gash to his lower leg after crashing his mountain bike. He was treated and transferred to a local hospital by NWAS ambulance. Thirty one
4 3 27/08/2017 13:45 Rescue Patterdale A mountain biker, with a suspected pelvic injury, turned up at Base asking for help. He was treated and transferred to a local hospital by ambulance. 44 27/08/2017 20:01 Search Helvellyn A father and daughter failed to return from a walk on Helvellyn. As the Team was mobilising they turned up safe and well. 45 28/08/2017 16:16 Rescue Striding Edge After a very busy weekend, the Team was also called out when a man and his dog fell a significant distance from Striding Edge. The man sustained serious injuries
and was treated by Team members and the Great North Air Ambulance doctor and paramedic who climbed up to the casualty’s location alongside Team members. Given the poor weather, the Team swiftly lowered and carried the man below the cloud to a point where the Coastguard rescue helicopter could evacuate. The helicopter crew did an astounding job at getting as close as possible in atrocious flying conditions. The man’s dog was taken to a local veterinary practice having been treated by the Team’s vet on the scene. He suffered a serious leg fracture but made a good recovery. Thanks go to Penrith MRT for backing us up on these incidents.
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46 01/09/2017 00:39 Rescue Inn on the Lake The Team was called by Cumbria Police to reports of a man in Ullswater, close to the Inn on the Lake. While the Team was responding, the man managed to make his way to the shore where he was greeted by Cumbria Police and NWAS. The callout lasted one hour and was attended by eight volunteers. 47 02/09/2017 11:52 Rescue Lake path The Team was called to assist a woman who had fallen and injured her knee while walking along the lake shore path between Howtown and Hartsop. She was treated on scene and evacuated by boat to Base for onward transfer to hospital.
48 10/09/2017 14:29 Rescue Sandwick Bay A man slipped from the lake shore path near Sandwick Bay and badly injured his knee. He was treated on scene and transferred by the Team’s boat to an ambulance. 49 12/09/2017 18:28 Rescue High Dodd The Team was called by Cumbria Police to assist a 15-year-old student with an ankle injury. Faced with the oncoming
Storm Aileen, the Team quickly headed to the scene. While on route it was confirmed by the informants that they had managed to undertake a self-rescue within the group, and carried the student off the fell and to safety. The callout lasted one hour and was attended by ten volunteers. 50 16/09/2017 18:28 Rescue Scandale Pass The Team was called to assist a group of five walkers who were making slow progress down Scandale Pass, benighted and without torches. One had suffered a minor injury. The five were part of a much larger group of 76 inexperienced walkers and it was later established that two others had become separated from the group too but had made it down to their Thirty three
At the start of the walk
campsite safely. While this rescue was going on, colleagues at Langdale Ambleside MRT took another call for two walkers lost in the same area. This couple also had no map and no torches. It was a frustrating evening for both Teams given that the problems could so easily have been avoided with a little preparation. 51 16/09/2017 20:38 Search Patterdale Two people were reported missing after a walk on St Sunday Crag. They turned up safe at the Patterdale Hotel before the Team was mobilised. 52 17/09/2017 12:30 Rescue Aira Force The team was called to assist NWAS to Thirty four
evacuate a woman from Aira Force who had suffered a seizure while out walking. The callout lasted 1.5 hours and was attended by seven Team members. 53 19/09/2017 09:43 Rescue Angle Tarn Pikes The Team was tasked by Cumbria Police to attend a woman that who set off from her overnight camp at Angle Tarn Pikes, intending to go to Beda Fell. She had slipped on wet grass and injured her leg. Due to growing concerns about potential injuries and assistance in searching a large area, a Coastguard helicopter from Prestwick was scrambled. The woman was eventually located and treated on the fell by Team members before being evacuated to hospital for further treatment by the Coastguard helicopter.
54 23/09/2017 16:09 Rescue Sandwick Bay The Team was called out by Cumbria Police to assist a man who had stumbled and sustained an injury to his knee while out walking along the Ullswater Way. The Team responded with two Land Rovers and, on arrival, met up with colleagues from Penrith MRT. The man was assessed on scene and evacuated by stretcher to the vehicles and he then made his own way to hospital. The callout lasted two hours and was attended by 14 volunteers. 55 24/09/2017 14:38 Rescue Scalehow Wood A man, walking with friends, fell and injured his knee. He was treated on scene by the Team and stretchered to a Land Rover before onward transfer to hospital
by a NWAS ambulance. 56 08/10/2017 16:34 Rescue Deepdale The Team was called out to rescue a woman walker who had slipped and injured her ankle while walking in Deepdale Park, above Deepdale The Team doctor treated her for a suspected fractured ankle with a splint and pain relief. She was stretchered off the hill back to the Team Land Rovers and transferred to Base. The callout was attended by 14 volunteer Team members and lasted three hours. 57 09/10/2017 18:24 Search Boredale Hause The Team was called out by Cumbria Police to locate a party of elderly
walkers who were last seen in the area of Boredale Hause. As the Team was assembling and preparing detailed search plans for the area, it was informed by a member of the group who was staying at the Patterdale Hotel, that the group had turned up safe and well in the Martindale valley. 58 10/10/2017 14:49 Rescue St Raven’s Edge The Team was called out to help evacuate a woman with an ankle injury from St Raven’s Edge above Kirkstone Pass. The woman was treated at the scene by the Team doctor for a suspected fracture ankle. After her ankle was splinted, she was placed in a cas bag, stretchered from the fell to the waiting ambulance and transferred to hospital.
The incident was attended by seven Team members and lasted 3.5 hours.
59 14/10/2017 17:20 Search Hart Crag The Team was called by two walkers who were lost in the mist. They had an excellent data signal on their mobile phone so the Team Leader asked them to download the OS Locate app. Once their location was known, they were directed down the mountain safely over the next few hours. Thirty five
60 15/10/2017 11:38 Rescue Glencoyne Bay While the Team was on a rescue boat training exercise, the Coastguard received reports of a man who had capsized his kayak on Ullswater. He was located by the Team on the lake shore. 61 16/10/2017 07:00 Fatality Piers Ghyll, Sca Fell Pike The Team was called to assist other Lake District teams in a major search in the central fells. The missing man was located in Piers Ghyll having sustained fatal injuries. 62 21/10/2017 13:13 Rescue High Knott A woman slipped and broke her ankle on High Knott. She was given pain relief by Thirty six
the Team before being stretchered to an ambulance at Sandwick Bay. The rescue lasted four hours. 63 28/10/2017 15:32 Search Fairfield/Cofa Pike The Team was called by two walkers who were lost in mist.
A passing couple went to their aid and the Team climbed to Cofa Pike to meet them and accompany them on their descent. 64 29/10/2017 12:30 Rescue Ullswater The Team was called to a boat which had suffered engine failure on Ullswater but this was resolved and the team was stood down on route. 65 29/10/2017 14:28 Rescue Swirral Edge A man fell approximately 100 metres from Swirral Edge and the Team was tasked by Cumbria Police to attend. The injured man was treated on scene and flown by Coastguard helicopter to hospital.
66 02/12/2017 13:35 Rescue Hole in the Wall, above Red Tarn The Team was called out by Cumbria Police to assist a man who had slipped on ice and sustained a head injury at the Hole in the Wall, above Red Tarn. The man was treated at the scene by Team
medics before being placed in a cas bag and stretchered down towards Greenside Mines, where he was transferred into a Land Rover ambulance and then back to the Rescue Centre. The incident was attended by 12 members and lasted 3.5 hours. 67 06/12/2017 16:00 Search Birkside Gill The Team was contacted by Cumbria Police to reports of a couple lost near Helvellyn. The Team was able to establish contact with them and obtained a location from their phone, which positioned them at Birkside Gill on the slope of Willie Wife Moor. The location was in the Keswick MRT area so its members found and escorted the couple to safety.
68 08/12/2017 18:11 Rescue Stybarrow Crag The Team was asked to assist NWAS and Cumbria Fire and Rescue Service in reaching a woman who had been involved in a serious road accident and was down a steep embankment, still inside her vehicle. The woman was stabilised at the scene by Team doctors and paramedics before being transferred on a stretcher to the waiting ambulance. The rescue was attended by 15 members and lasted 2.5 hours. 69 11/12/2017 18:33 Rescue Blea Water The Team was called to assist Penrith MRT with an incident above Blea Water in Mardale. An experienced climber had suffered multiple injuries following a Thirty seven
fall from a popular ice climb route. The rescue lasted for several hours, involved 40 mountain rescuers on a long stretcher carry, the GNAA and the Coastguard helicopter. See photo below 70 24/12/2017 13:06 Rescue Winter Crag, Martindale On Christmas Eve, the Team was called
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by Cumbria Police to assist a female walker who had sustained a fractured ankle while out walking with friends. On arrival at scene her ankle was assessed and placed in a vacuum splint. She was placed on a stretcher and carried back to the Land Rover and transferred to an NWAS Ambulance at Pooley Bridge. The rescue lasted two hours and was
attended by nine Team members. 71 25/12/2017 05:14 Rescue Red Tarn Early on Christmas Day, the Team was alerted by Cumbria Police to a couple suffering the effects of hypothermia after spending the night in a tent next to Red Tarn outfall, beneath Helvellyn.
Once mobile phone contact was established with the couple, it became apparent that they were looking for advice and guidance on the best course of action after spending a very wet and windy night. As a precautionary measure, a Team member walked up to Red Tarn and assisted the couple back down to their car in Glennridding.
72 26/12/2017 21:06 Rescue Red Screes Following reports of flashing lights half way up Red Screes above Kirkstone Pass, Team members met up with the reporting person at the Kirkstone Inn. After investigation it was concluded the lights were from people who were camping and no action was required.
73 30/12/2017 17:05 Search Aira Force The Team was alerted by Cumbria Police about a couple who had reported themselves as lost in the vicinity of Aira Force. As the Team arrived, the missing people turned up safe and well at the car park.
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B From rescued er to rescuer Twelve
ACK in February 1995, the Team was involved in the rescue of a climber from the Midlands who had been avalanched out of Nethermost Gully on Helvellyn with serious injuries. Mark Tomlinson was enjoying a great day of winter conditions with his climbing partner and life-long friend, Rick Salter when a cornice of hardened snow collapsed into the gully, creating an avalanche of snow and rock that carried Mark about over 185 metres (600 feet) down the mountainside. Mark has recently moved to Greystoke in semi-retirement with his wife and has joined the Team as a probationer – a great example of the rescued becoming a rescuer. What do you remember most clearly about your accident? Mark I think it was the sensation of falling and bouncing, waiting for a mortal thud. Being buried on the way down,
surrounded by heavy snow that was putting huge pressure on my chest was strange and yet while I was falling I felt oddly weightless too as I lost all sense of direction and gravity. And throughout, I was wondering where Rick was, whether he was in the avalanche too and whether we were going to die, buried at the bottom of the gully. Then there was the eerie silence once the huge rumbling of falling rock and snow had stopped and I had survived. Were you seriously injured? Mark There were lots of bumps and bruises but the main worry was my ankle which was crushed quite badly – I remember looking at my left foot once I’d stopped falling and seeing it pointing at 7 o’clock and aimlessly hanging – definitely broken. The Team was able to get my boot and sock off and put the whole thing into an inflatable splint before I was stretchered off the mountain. Once
in hospital, they wondered about amputation but agreed to “wait and see” how it healed. The specialist hoped I’d be able to walk eventually so it seems pretty amazing, 20 or so years later, that I’m back on the mountains and volunteering with MR too! What about Rick? Mark Rick suffered from concussion, a cut to his ear and crampon lacerations to his knee and calf but he was otherwise pretty much OK and was out of hospital within days of the accident. Rick and I live in adjacent villages and we still regularly go walking and climbing in the Lake District and Scotland. What do you remember about your rescuers? Mark I was very fortunate that there were other people about when I fell and some of them, particularly a group of
Scouts, did all the right things to keep me safe and warm until the mountain rescuers arrived. Once in the care of the Team, I felt very safe and secure, even as they carried me down to the valley through high streams and over more snow. I know several of them got very wet indeed but they did a great job of keeping me dry! There are a few current Team colleagues that were involved in my rescue back then and remember the rescue.
a great laugh too. You can’t beat it. A full account of Mark’s fall and rescue is downloadable as a pdf from the Team website at www.mountainrescue.org.uk, in the XXXX section.
What are you enjoying most about getting involved with the Team now? Mark Being able to give something back to the great outdoors after a lifetime of enjoying the gifts it has given to me but equally as important is being part of the large family that is the Mountain Rescue Team. Colleagues, families, friends and helpers, all of us volunteers with common interests and purpose. So welcoming, supportive and Thirteen
Fund Raising
W
E’VE had another good year on the fundraising side of things for the Team with tremendous support locally, from members of the Team, friends and supporters of the Team and also several fundraisers elsewhere in the UK. We have attended shows and events in and around the valley with our magnificent fundraising trailer. This has allowed us to promote the Team, the work of Mountain Rescue and general safety in the mountains. In addition to this we have raised funds, increased our Supporter’s Club membership, sold merchandise and recruited even more fundraisers! This valuable exposure keeps us in the public eye and we always walk away having met interesting and grateful people as well as being financially slightly better off. Thanks
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to everyone who was involved in funding and creating the trailer as it is proving an amazing asset. We have benefited massively from the recent formation of our fundraising support team – a merry and enthusiastic band of volunteers with a passion for ‘shaking that tin’ and much more. You can read a brief Q&A with one of them on page XX. Having a combination of operational Team members with fundraisers seems to be the perfect combination on the trailer and my thanks go to all those who have helped in the past year. We did have a slightly unfortunate start to 2017 when we had our trailer broken into and the generator stolen. A Facebook plea saw a new generator (plus a spare!) donated, showing us that there are a lot of
generous and good hearted people out there and they certainly outnumber the dishonest ones. Thanks to everyone who helped to spread the word and especially to those who donated the replacement plus one! The inclusion of the Team in people’s wills and legacies is always humbling. In many sad but generous ways, the Team has benefited recently from a number of these, all linked to people who have been affected or helped by the Team in the past. Thank you to all the families involved in these donations and we will endeavor to do them justice and use
these donations to carry on our work in the best ways possible. For the online shop and for events, we have been looking at different and interesting merchandising ideas, to add to our Camel Bottles, First Aid Kits and Headover Neckwarmers. We want to make these items both useful and affordable as well as different and with a mountain theme. Torches and whistles are favorites, as are smart phone pens and quiz books. Please support the shop as and when you can and, if you come across a great item that you think we could adapt and stock, please get in touch. The fourth Landrover Ambulance was bequeathed by the late Jim Cowlin. His friends and family joined us for its naming ‘JAC4’
I’d like to finish this report by thanking the many individuals and groups across Cumbria and the UK who have raised money for us in the past year. We couldn’t operate and we certainly couldn’t plan ahead without the support of those of care and donate to our cause – and those who stuff envelopes, sell cards, post copies of Patrick Relay and run around stocking trailer shelves. So thank you to all our local and national supporters, of all ages and no matter how Patterdale MRT has come into their lives (in sad or in good ways). I’d like to finish by thanking every single one of them. Thank you. Nigel Harling, Fundraising Officer
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P
ATTERDALE is represented at international rescue level. If you think of Thunderbirds when people mention International Rescue then you might need to think again.
ICAR Forty two
Dr John Ellerton, one of the Team’s doctors, has been involved with ICAR (the International Commission for Alpine Rescue) for 15 years and he was unanimously elected as the President of the organisation’s Medical Commission at the annual congress in Andorra in October 2017. “It is a great honour to be confirmed as the President of the Medical Commission of ICAR,” says John. “The Commission is a vibrant group of about 70 health
care professionals and their collective experience is immense. Some of them work in the most organised and regulated rescue systems and others are volunteers in teams with few resources beyond a stretcher. We are bound together by a passion for mountains and remote places, and a wish to help people that get into difficulty. ICAR encompasses six continents, if you include the North Pole! Our aim is to provide and encourage the free exchange of the best mountain rescue knowledge.” The Lake District Mountain Rescue Search Dog Association (LDMRSDA) has been attending ICAR for a number of years. During the 2017 Congress, the team’s Deputy Team Leader and current LDMRSDA Training Officer,
Andy Peacock, gave a presentation to delegates as part of the organisation’s successful formal membership application. LDMRSDA has now joined the two established UK members, Mountain Rescue England and Wales and Scottish Mountain Rescue. “ICAR has recognised the incredible work of search dogs and formed a Dog Sub Committee,” says Andy. “It is a great privilege and honour to be able to exchange ideas and information on an international stage with handlers from all over the world.”
is a combination of practical workshops, specialist gatherings, knowledge sharing among experts from across the world and an AGM and closing dinner, usually with a local flavour. The 2018 congress will take place in Chamonix in France and will focus on the impact and influence of climate change on mountain rescue operations.
ICAR was founded in 1948 and has its base in Switzerland in the heart of the Alps. It has 103 member organisations in 37 different countries, three of them now from the UK. Its annual congress Forty three
Looking after the money
Joan Watson
A
NY charity needs someone with the experience and expertise to look after all aspects of the money coming into and going out. The Patterdale Team has a parallel organisation, the Patterdale Mountain Rescue Association, which is a registered charity with a group of Trustees who manage the governance and plan for a secure future for the Team. A key player for over 25 years has been Joan Watson, Treasurer of PMRA and, before that, Treasurer for the Outward Bound Rescue Team which used to operate in the valley. Joan has made a huge contribution to the Team over the years and many members of the Supporters’ Club will have had dealings with her too. Our thanks go to Joan for those many years of invaluable service.
Joan retired last year (although she’s continuing to help out with the Supporters’ Club) and our thanks go to Jane Newport who has stepped into Joan’s shoes as our new Treasurer: How did you get involved in mountain rescue? Jane: In the past, I was a member of Coniston MRT but, when I moved to Ullswater 15 years ago, it was clear that MR had moved on from a technical point of view and I was probably beginning to slow down on the hills too! I’ve kept walking and still love being outdoors and I’ve had various jobs that have kept me in touch with Ullswater and with mountain rescuers.
Do you need to be an accountant to be a Treasurer? Jane: I’m a retired mathematician rather than an accountant and I’ve done all sorts of things in past including modelling reservoirs for a water authority and teaching maths in a school! When Jacquie Freeborn asked if I’d consider this role, I was conscious of that lack of knowledge and the technology and terminology is still a bit of a challenge but I’ve had lots of support from Joan and others on the Team and I’m getting there, I think. What other hobbies and interests do you have? Jane: I have a rescued collie cross dog called Jack and walk with him locally. I am also a volunteer with a project that
is investigating the presence of bats in the high fells of Cumbria. This means that I also go into the mountains to put out and maintain bat detectors. As well as these outdoor pursuits, I also enjoy gardening, reading and trying to encourage participation in local activities. And a final thought on the value of MR? Jane: I’m very fortunate and have not (yet) needed to call on the services of mountain rescue. But I am well aware that the difference between being safe and needing help is just a short lapse of concentration or an insecure foothold. I’m pleased to be contributing to the Team and look forward to having contact with our supporters in the years to come.
Jane Newport
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The Association’s Treasurer is The Honorary Treasurer, PMRT Association Ltd UNTS counts Ogilvie House, Patterdale, NNUAL ACCO ed ac A e audit obtained th f o y e Cumbria CA11 0PJ b y a A cop asurer rm
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If you wish to make a donation
Supporter Number
Supporters’ Club Membership Form To join the Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team Supporters Club complete this form and send to: The Honorary Treasurer, Patterdale Mountain Rescue Association Ltd, Ogilvie House, Patterdale, Cumbria CA11 0PJ Name .......................................................................Title .................. Address .............................................................................................. ............................................................................................................. ...............................................Post Code..................Date................. Please enrol me as a member of the Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team Supporters Club under the following membership level
Individual 1 Year Membership (min £12)
Family Lifetime Membership (min £500)
Family 1 Year Membership (min £25)
Individual 5 Year Membership (min £60)
(please tick appropriate boxes).
I enclose cheque / PO for £.........................................
Print Name......................................
Gift Aid Declaration. To be signed by taxpayers Please treat my donations to PMRA Ltd as Gift Aid Donations I understand that I must pay Income or Capital Gains Tax equal to the tax deducted from this and all future donations (28p for every pound you give) Signed ....................................
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Family 5 Year Membership A minimum contribution of £125
Please make all cheques payable to PMRA Ltd.
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Apply to The Honorary Treasurer: PMRA Ltd. Ogilvie House, Patterdale, Cumbria CA11 0PJ As a token of our appreciation for your support we will also ensure that all Supporters receive a car sticker and, in the case of those able to make a longer term commitment, a unique membership badge.
Individual 5 Year Membership A minimum contribution of £60 There are five categories of membership, all of which entitle you to ongoing contact via the Team’s newsletter, Patrick Relay and our Annual Report.
Family 1 Year Membership A minimum contribution of £25
Lifetime Membership A minimum contribution of £500 Individual 1 Year Membership A minimum contribution of £12
please join our SUPPORTERS’ club
Support The support team behind the Team
As you can read elsewhere in this Annual Report, one of the year’s highlights from a fundraising point of view has been the continued growth of the active supporters group. One of those first members was Ken Hardcastle who is now a familiar face at events around the valley. How did you get involved in mountain rescue? Ken: I have been a keen mountain and fell walker for the best part of 50 years and a work colleague of mine was involved in one of the North Wales teams in the 1980s. By the time I retired, I was past the point of operational involvement but approached Patterdale to offer support on fundraising and whatever else might be useful behind the scenes. What sort of jobs do you and the others get involved with? Ken: It’s quite varied, depending on
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where our skills lie. Being out at events on behalf of the Team is at the heart of it but I’ve also got involved in the administration of the Team’s insurance (using my business background), there’s plenty of Base and vehicle maintenance to be done and we also help on distributing reports and copies of Patrick Relay to other supporters. What other hobbies and interests do you have? Ken: My main leisure pastimes are hill walking and photography, but I also spend a considerable amount of time trying to convert my patch of hillside into something approaching a garden. Supporting the Patterdale team is a welcome alternative to that! And a final thought on the value of this group? Ken: There’ve already been occasions when we’ve been able to have a
presence at a local event even though operational Team members are called out to incidents. And I think the Team appreciate that others are supporting the work and raise some of the funds rather than this being another demand on their limited time.
BE PART OF THE TEAM
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If you’d like to get involved in some way yourself, please contact Nigel Harling (contact details on page 2) for details.
See full range and ORDER ON LINE www.mountainrescue.org.uk/shop Want to order offline? Contact Jacquie Freeborn, Motherby House, Motherby, Penrith, Cumbria CA11 0RJ T: 017684 83368 E-mail jacquie@motherbyhouse.co.uk Thirteen
Rescue Benevolent Fund
All cards are blank inside for all occasion and all year round use Photos by award winning photographer John Williams and Andy McAlea and Mark Littlejohn
There’s never a ‘good time’ to have an accident. Right? Accidents happen, we know that. Sometimes, they happen to team members while they’re involved with rescuing someone else. And, more often than not, they’ve put their own lives and families on hold to help someone in need. Quite apart from any physical or psychological injuries, that accident might impact on their ability to earn.Their family might struggle, both financially and emotionally. The Rescue Benevolent Fund is there to help team members and their families — from across England and Wales — when they need it, with the physical rehabilitation of broken limbs, emotional support through access to counselling and even immediate or longer term financial support.
Alea
CARDS
Please donate to the
See full range and ORDER ON LINE www.mountainrescue.org.uk/shop
Winter rescue © Andy Mac
Greetings
Buy ur from o p sho online ort pp and su m a the Te
We can’t do it without you By making a donation to the Rescue Benevolent Fund, you’ll be helping us support team members and their families in times of hardship. And it could just as easily be a Patterdale team member asking for our support. So thank you, in anticipation. Thank you.
Rescue Benevolent Fund So WE can be there to help support TEAM MEMBERS when they need it
For the mountain and cave rescue family in need
To donate, go to justgiving.com/rescuebenevolentfund Website: rescuebenevolent.fund
Email: secretary@rescuebenevolent.fund
Mountain and Cave Rescue Benevolent Fund is a registered charity No 1152798
For Mountain Rescue call 999
• Dial ‘999’ – ask for CUMBRIA POLICE – then MOUNTAIN RESCUE. • Provide details of who you are, your group size and their condition, your current location (Grid Reference if possible), and a contact number. • Keep yourself and your group safe and warm, protected from the weather and wait for the Mountain Rescue team to contact you with further instructions. • Do not move unless asked to by the Mountain Rescue - mobile signals vary and moving just a small distance may lose a mobile signal.