Swirral Edge, scene of the fall

A walker suffered head and face injuries after a fall today from England’s third highest mountain.

The 65-year-old from Oldham, Greater Manchester, fell 200m (650ft) from Swirral Edge on Helvellyn this afternoon.

Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team was alerted about 12.45 after the walker had fallen into Brown Cove.

Passing walkers cared for the injured man while rescue team members made their way to the site with a paramedic and doctor from the Great North Air Ambulance, which was prevented from flying to the scene of the accident by low cloud.

A spokesperson for the Patterdale team said: “An RAF Sea King helicopter was also requested due to the reported site of the incident. The Sea King was not able to get to the casualty’s position due to low cloud and therefore waited for the weather to improve to assist the rescue team.

“The team placed the casualty in a full body splint and strapped him into a stretcher. He was then lowered for several hundred metres to the valley bottom and carried to the aircraft which had managed to land in the valley.”

The injured walker was airlifted to the Cumberland Infirmary, Carlisle, for further treatment.