Volunteer rescue team members receive a cheque from the GPs' alliance

Volunteer rescuers in the Yorkshire Dales have received a cash boost as thanks for their help in the Covid-19 vaccination effort.

The Wharfedale, Airedale and Craven Alliance, a federation of general-practice doctors in the area, handed over £5,000 to the Cave Rescue Organisation and Upper Wharfedale Fell Rescue Association.

A CRO spokesperson said, during the lockdowns this year and the previous year, the normal operational call on the mountain rescue teams was greatly reduced and this freed up team members to assist at the Covid-19 vaccination centre run by WACA, initially at Skipton Hospital and then at Gateway House.

WACA supported the rescue teams by placing donation buckets in the centre. The recent donation represents cash given by patients attending the Skipton Covid-19 vaccination centre during 2021.

Volunteer co-ordinator Simon Oxley, who is also a CRO team member said: “When we put together the initial vaccination centre volunteer group in December 2020 the mountain rescue teams seemed ideally suited for marshal duties in the windswept and snowy car park.

“We have now grown to around 200 volunteers but the two local mountain rescue teams have continued to form a core part of that, even though they have now also returned to operational rescue activities.”

WACA clinical director Hilary Moakes said: “It’s fantastic having the rescue teams involved in the vaccination centre. Their training in casualty care is a great asset when we have to monitor patients after their vaccination in case of adverse reactions, as well as the teams’ ability to deal with slips and trips in the car park.”

Rescue team members with specific qualifications have also been involved in setting up the
vaccination centre standards and procedures and as vaccinators.

The CRO, which goes to the aid of people and animals in difficulty above and below ground in the Yorkshire Dales, from Malhamdale in the East to Barbondale in the West, has recently refreshed the training of its existing 10-member volunteer team of swiftwater and flood rescue technicians and has qualified five additional members.

The newly qualified will need to be fully equipped and the donation will help in doing that. It said, with 15 trained members available, CRO is in a strong position to cover rivers and flooding in its own area as well as supporting similarly trained rescuers in adjacent areas. Although the team’s main focus is on the River Ribble and the Ingleton Waterfalls, members have, in recent years, helped in flooding incidents in Cumbria and York

Martin Holroyd, the CRO’s water-rescue instructor and a duty controller said: “This marvellous donation will be put towards the cost of personal protective equipment for the team’s five newly trained and qualified water rescue technicians and we will top that up from team funds. The equipment comprises dry suit, specialist boots, personal flotation device, helmet, gloves, lighting and throw-line, costing around £1,000 per person.”