The headwall of Helvellyn above Red Tarn
A climber was rescued in a 10-hour operation on England’s third highest peak.
The Penrith man suffered a suspected spinal injury when he slipped on a route on Helvellyn’s headwall and landed badly.
A total of 25 mountain rescue team members took part in the rescue after the fall which happened about 3.30pm yesterday, Friday. 17 members of the Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team were joined by eight colleagues from the Penrith team in the incident.
Langdale and Ambleside Mountain Rescue Team had been alerted initially because a wrong location had been given, but the rescue was passed to the Patterdale team.
A Patterdale MRT spokesperson said: “The climber had injured his lower spine and was eventually located on a rock ledge on Viking Buttress on the headwall of Helvellyn.
“The team climbed in and assessed the injuries and administered analgesia and placed him in a vacuum mattress.
“The weather conditions precluded the attendance of a helicopter so the man was carried down to Greenside on a stretcher.
“The evacuation took ten hours due to the technical nature of the rescue, the difficulty of the position on the crag and the deep spindrift snow conditions.”
The climber was taken to Penrith Hospital for further treatment. His climbing companion was able to walk off the hill with a rescuer, though he was suffering from mild hypothermia.
The incident is the second in less than a week on the Helvellyn headwall, above Red Tarn. Last Saturday, a 20-year-old student from London suffered multiple injuries, including a suspected broken thigh, when she fell while climbing with a group of fellow students on the 950m (3,117ft) mountain.
- Rescuers also helped two climbers from Leeds who were lost on Helvellyn after completing a route.
The pair rang police to say they were disoriented and needed directions to get off the mountain.
A Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team spokesperson said: “Repeated attempts to get back to their mobile phones were thwarted due to very poor reception.
“By sending text messages the team eventually made contact and the climbers called the rescue centre.
“Members of the Penrith team who were assisting with the previous job located them safe and well.”
