The path above The Swirls where the walker slipped. Photo: Shaun Ferguson CC-BY-SA-2.0
A walker taking part in a charity challenge in memory of a police officer had to be rescued after injuring her ankle.
The 30-year-old woman had been taking part in the Light the Lakes event commemorating Detective Constable Heather Cooper when she slipped and twisted her ankle above The Swirls, on the western slopes of Helvellyn.
Keswick Mountain Rescue Team was alerted about 6.30am on Saturday and went to the aid of the woman.
She was treated at the scene west of Whiteside and carried down the fellside to an ambulance, which took her to the Cumberland Infirmary in Carlisle for further treatment. 15 volunteers from the team took part in the rescue, which took two hours.
The Light the Lakes event was organised by Sergeant Ian Davis, chair of the Surrey Police Federation, to raise cash for the family of Ms Cooper, the 33-year-old whose body was found in Blackdown Woods, West Sussex.
More than 600 people took part in the event, which saw walkers climb each of the 214 Wainwright fells in the Lake District and illuminate a light in the police officer’s memory.
Later the same morning, members of three mountain rescue teams took part in an operation to help a man who collapsed near the top of Dale Head above Honister.
Two calls were taken by Keswick MRT reporting an incident on the 753m (2,470ft) fell about 11.45am.
The Keswick team was joined by Cockermouth Mountain Rescue Team and members of the RAF Valley Mountain Rescue Team from Anglesey, who were training in the area.
The 42-year-old walker had collapsed near the summit. A Keswick MRT spokesperson said: “Fortunately for him, a passing Harley Street cardiologist witnessed the collapse and immediately started cardio-pulmonary resuscitation.
“When support arrived from the Great North Air Ambulance and an RAF Sea King, the man was revived and flown to hospital in Whitehaven for intensive coronary care.”
Twenty Keswick MRT members were joined in the 2¼-hour operation by the RAF MRT colleagues, Cockermouth MRT, the Great North Air Ambulance and the helicopter from RAF Boulmer in Northumberland.
