Tweed Valley Mountain Rescue Team members at the scene of the rescue of the two walkers near Dollar Law. Photo: TVMRT

Two hypothermic walkers were rescued from a remote Borders hillside after getting lost in the dark.

The pair called 999 after becoming disoriented on a walk up Dollar Law on Thursday.

Tweed Valley Mountain Rescue Team was called out to search for the lost hillwalkers in the area south-west of Peebles.

Team spokesman Dave Wright said: “The pair had intended to make a circuit of the remote Manor Valley including taking in the summit of the corbett Dollar Law but had become lost and disorientated in deteriorating weather conditions and had requested assistance after darkness had set in.

“One of the team’s search managers was able to contact the men by mobile phone and from the description of their surroundings dispatched the team to their likely location.

“The men were located at around 2.30am and were uninjured but wet, tired and suffering from the early effects of hypothermia and exposure.

“A helicopter was requested but was unable to fly due to the poor conditions on the hill so one of the team’s purpose-designed Land Rover ambulances was sent to assist with the evacuation and was able to approach to with 1km of the casualties’ location from the Megget Reservoir side of the hills.

“The casualties were then taken off the hill and handed to a waiting ambulance. 16 team members, including one dog handler, were involved in this incident.

“The team was also assisted by the local farmer who helped provide local knowledge of terrain and likely walking routes.”

The Tweed Valley team was called out again on Friday when three fellrunners rang for help from the Southern Upland Way near Walkerburn.

One of the runners was injured and the rescuers arrived at the scene within 30 minutes of their callout.

The runners were helped from the hill and handed over to a waiting ambulance.

Earlier in the week, the volunteers from the Selkirk-based team responded to a request from police to help find a missing person in West Lothian.

Mr Wright said: “The team deployed eight team members and were joined by three search dogs and their handlers form the Search and Rescue Dog Association who searched rough terrain close to the missing person’s last known location through the night.

“The missing person was later located by police outside the search area.”

Team members rounded off a busy few days by providing first-aid cover at the launch of the Selkirk Mountain Bike Festival on Friday evening and at the British Mountain Bike Championship at Selkirk on Saturday.

Deputy team leader Pete Matthews said: “This has been a busy week for the team, especially at this time of year, and the shouts we have had reflect the variety of jobs we are asked to attend as a mountain rescue team covering the Lothian and Borders region.

“The team trains through the year to respond to just such a variety of incidents such as these.

“I would like to thank team members who have been involved in these incidents, all of whom give their time voluntarily and I would also like to thank the families and employers of our team members, without whose support we would not be able to operate.”