Lake District walkers have been warned to take plenty of water and food as fell top temperatures rise

A mountain rescue team has urged walkers to be on their guard against heat exhaustion as Britain goes on to heatwave alert.

The warning came from Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team after they dealt with two casualties who suffered medical problems in the weekend heat. Exceptionally high temperatures, up to 17C on the Lakeland summits, are forecast for the coming week, along with high humidity.

The Patterdale team’s first of two calls yesterday, Saturday, came in response to a report of a man who had collapsed and was fitting on the Ullswater shore path near Howtown.

The team used its rescue boat to reach the man, who was receiving treatment by an ambulance crew by the time they got to him. His condition improved enough for him to be helped to walk a short distance to the ambulance which took him to hospital.

Twenty team members were involved in the incident. They were immediately pressed into further action as they were taking their boat out of the water. A passer-by had picked up a poorly man and his wife near a campsite at Patterdale and was driving them to their vehicle at Glenridding when the man’s condition deteriorated.

The MRT’s doctor assessed the man and he was taken to the team’s base at Patterdale. The rescue team’s doctor monitored his pulse, blood pressure, oxygen levels and temperature and carried out an electrocardiogram.

His condition improved enough for him to return to the campsite at Side Farm.

Signs of heat exhaustion include a pale, cool, clammy skin; rapid breathing; profuse sweating; cramps in the limbs and abdomen; thirst, nausea and vomiting; constant headache; lethargy. Treatment is to put the casualty into shade; make sure they take part in no further exertion; lay them down; remove unnecessary clothing – with their consent; cool them by sponging with water; give them water to drink after their nausea has passed.

Untreated, heat exhaustion can lead to heat stroke, when the body’s core temperature rises to a level that can lead to coma and death – this can occur at a mere 3½ degrees above normal body temperature. Immediate emergency care is vital if this occurs.

A spokesperson for Patterdale MRT said: “The team advises that anyone venturing in the outdoors takes adequate food and water with them at anytime of the year, and particularly when it the weather conditions are hot.

“In hot and humid conditions, such as those experienced this week, dehydration and heat exhaustion can occur.”