Rescuers in action during the incident on The Cheviot. Photo: NNPMRT
A group of walkers was helped to safety after one of them injured themselves on The Cheviot, on the England-Scotland border.
Northumberland National Park Mountain Rescue Team and North of Tyne Mountain Rescue Team were alerted to the incident on Monday when one of four young men suffered a lower leg injury on the 815m (2,674ft) mountain.
A NNPMRT spokesperson said: “With darkness drawing in and the temperatures dropping, they called the emergency services who quickly activated mountain rescue.”
Rescuers were just being stood down after completing a rescue near Kielder, at the far end of their patch.
“Given the location, the dropping temperatures and the potential for a prolonged and tricky stretcher carry, both teams were called out and those members at Kielder redeployed to the Harthope Valley, below The Cheviot.”
An advance ‘hasty’ team of two rescuers volunteers reached the injured walker and the rest of the party just before 7pm. The team said, with windchill dropping the temperature to near freezing, the men had begun the difficult walk down from the summit, in an attempt to keep warm.
They were provided with spare warm clothing by the mountain rescuers. Meanwhile additional team members assembled in the valley below.
It became apparent that, with additional warm layers and headtorches, the men could walk off the hill with rescuers’ support. By 7.45pm, everyone was down safely and the young men were in good spirits, despite their ordeal. Team leader for Northumberland National Park Mountain Rescue Team Iain Nixon said: “The group had done the right thing by calling 999 and asking for the police and then mountain rescue. We would always advise that if someone is in difficulty, they call first so that we’re in a position to offer help quickly.
“We always recommend that the public follow the Be Adventure Smart guidance when planning their days out in Northumberland.
“Despite it being a bit lighter in the afternoons, we still recommend that you dig out your torch, check the batteries and throw that in your bag along with extra warm layers such as hats, gloves, a fleece and an insulated jacket.
“Everyone uses their mobiles for taking photos and a lot of people use them for navigation now, but don’t rely on either of them. Having a map and compass and the know-how to use them will get people out of a tricky situation when your phone has run out of power.
“Planning for short days and looking how the weather might affect your plans is a part of planning for a good day.”
Rescuers prepare the stretcher beside Kielder Water. Photo: NNPMRT
In the earlier incident that afternoon, the father of a family out walking near Kielder Water suffered a lower leg injury. He was standing on a bank at the edge of the water which collapsed, resulting in a serious fall onto rocks below in the water.
He was able to get out of the water, but couldn’t put any weight on his leg and called 999.
The mountain rescue duty controller mobilised both teams and three response vehicles were deployed on blue lights.
When they arrived on scene, they worked alongside the community paramedic from the North East Ambulance Service to stabilise the injured man. They then wrapped the man in a Blizzard blanket and sleeping bag before transferring him to a mountain rescue stretcher. After a 500m stretcher carry through the woods, the man was transferred to an ambulance.
