2 January 2009 13.45 hrs
The Team was paged by the Police and asked to assist the County Ambulance Service with a collapsed male on the path through Longtail Wood (between Beetham and Storth). When we arrived at the scene First Responders and the ambulance crew had been joined by the crew from the Great North Air Ambulance and CPR was being administered to the casualty. With the assistance of team members the casualty was stretchered down the path to the waiting ambulance for onward transfer to the helicopter. Shortly after we reached the ambulance, however, the doctor from the Air Ambulance confirmed that the man had passed away. A sad start to the New Year.
11 January 2009 13.05 hrs
We were asked to assist the Langdale & Ambleside Team in the recovery of a man’s body following his fall in to the top end of Dungeon Ghyll in Great Langdale. Weather conditions were appalling, with very strong winds and heavy rain. The RAF Mountain Rescue Team, who were in the area, also assisted.
20 January 2009 18.25 hrs
The Team was called to search for a party of six who were reported as lost on the Kentmere Horseshoe. The party apparently found themselves in a pub as the Team was assembling so we all went home again!
31 January 16.45 hrs
The Langdale & Ambleside team was busy dealing with two fallen walkers at Rydal Head when they got a further call and paged the Kendal team for assistance. We went to assist a woman with an injured ankle on a path near the New Dungeon Ghyll Hotel. She was stretchered from the fell and taken to the Westmorland General Hospital in our Mobile 1 Land Rover.
1 February 19.15 hrs
Here began something of an epic. The Langdale & Ambleside team was busy dealing with a group of four walkers who had been overcome by the full winter conditions on the top of Crinkle Crags when they got another job. Sound familiar? The Kendal team was asked to assist and attend a man who was struggling to get down from Pike of Stickle with a knee injury. After a search, he was located high on the mountain near to Dungeon Ghyll and he was assisted down the Loft Crag path, in icy conditions, reaching the valley at about 21.30 hrs.
……… and (unusually) …….. from the Casualty’s perspective:
Hi to you all & many thanks again for the rescue of Pike O Stickle last Sunday. Especially to Michelle (from Ambleside I think) & Sarah from Kendal…. I’ve been mountain walking for over 30 years all over Europe & N. America & this was a first! I’m at home now recovering from my wee fall, & although still sore can’t wait to get back up on the fells. However it will be valley walks for a while whilst the weather is bad, thats something I’ve promised the wife.
The training for the K2B continues however, see you May 9th perhaps??
Just a quickie though, on the site, the callout wording is not exactly 100% correct regards my rescue. I’m not meaning to be pickie, but I wasn’t struggling to get down by myself at all. I only moved (supported) when reached by the LAMRT.
What exactly happened was that I took the fall off the path next to Dungeon Ghyll coming down the path by the crag & slipped coming down for about 30 – 50 ft on a snow/icy patch & basically just hammered into the rocks by the Ghyll. My right leg getting caught at the bottom & twisting me round. At the bottom I was now having excrusiating pain in my right leg & knee & was initially not being able to feel or move anything i suspected a knee/leg fracture. At this point I was very disorientated from the fall. However after the initiaI shock & pain had subsided, I realised I could not stay where I was exposed to the elements & therefore on all fours crawled for some time finally going through the ghyll into a shelter of sorts from the wind between the boulders just above/by the ghyll to get myself sorted & try to contact my wife or the MRS. I stayed where I was as I still couldn’t put any pressure on my knee/leg via my foot. So finally I realised in order to get the signal out I would need to pull myself up to the top of the boulders where I was & I tried this many times unsuccessively before I finally got a text out. (My phone kept cutting out when I tried calling). I finally got in contact with her via text about 6:30pm & she alerted the police via 999 where I was & what had happened. I’d lost my walking stick (if anyone finds it please give it back) & as it was now dark but I confirmed I still had my torch. However, 30 years of forces training told me to stay where I was, keep warm & await the rescue team. My wife knew exactly where I was walking & what time to expect my on way home call. When this didn’t arrive she was already alerting the emergency services. The Ambleside team located me about 19:45. They checked me out & ascertained then that to my relief I hadn’t fractured my leg, (I went after to Lancaster Hospital where pulled & twisted ligaments were confirmed, along with 3 stiches for a gash in my right hand plus severe brusing to my lower back where I hit the boulders after my fall). Its still bl**dy painful now though!
Again though, can I say many thanks to everyone who got me safely down, I even enjoyed the dip in the stream when we were crossing at the bottom of the Ghyll…..I’m also glad the x4 crinkle crags people also got down safely. A big thankyou & its a huge credit to you all. Take care & thanks again to everyone involved.
1 February 21.30 hrs
On reaching the valley with our previous customer we were asked to assist the Langdale & Ambleside team with their Crinkle Crags job. They had located the walkers but they were making very slow progress down the fell. The walkers were struggling with exhaustion in the worsening conditions and two of them were close to collapse. We set off up The Band in falling snow with two stretchers, two cas-bags and oxygen. About half way up we met two small groups of L&A team members slowly walking down two of the party (who looked pretty shattered) and we met up with the rest of the group in the vicinity of White Stones. The two walkers were then stretchered from the fell in deteriorating weather conditions. Snow falling on steep icy rocks and frozen turf made the evacuation difficult and very slow. The valley was reached at about 01.30 hrs and the casualties were transported to L&A’s base in Ambleside in our Mobile 2 vehicle for medical checks. The hot pies and mugs of tea provided by the L&A team at their base were much appreciated and most of us got to our beds at about 03.00 hrs.
4 February 21.00 hrs
The Langdale & Ambleside Team were part way through dealing with their second major callout of the day when their third came in and they asked the Kendal Team to take this on. An experienced and apparently well equipped lone male walker had failed to return. He was understood to be undertaking a route which included Crinkle Crags, Bow Fell, Esk Pike and Rossett Gill. His car had been found parked near the Old Dungeon Ghyll Hotel. A major search of this route, along with likely alternative routes down into the Langdale valley, was planned and Team members were sent off in groups. We were joined by a SeaKing helicopter from RAF Boulmer with thermal imaging equipment. At around 23.00 hrs the Police paged the team with yet another callout in the Barbon area but this was rapidly passed to the Cave Rescue Organisation for action. All of our search areas were completed, unfortunately without a find, and Team members were off the fell by about 05.00 hrs. The search re-commenced the following morning with L&A, Keswick, Wasdale, Duddon & Furness, Bowland Pennine, SARDA teams and another SeaKing from RAF Boulmer. Very sadly, the man had apparently fallen from Bow Fell in the vicinity of the Climbers’ Traverse and his body was found late morning.
7 February 10.35 hrs
The Team was called to a 45 year old female who had collapsed on the track at Low Borrowdale (Near Tebay). She was a member of a large walking group. When the team arrived the North West Air Ambulance was already in attendance and they flew the casualty to Lancaster Royal Infirmary.
14 February 2009 17.30 hrs
A group of five walkers became lost in the vicinity of Mardale Ill Bell (Kentmere Horseshoe) as darkness approached. They only had one torch between them and after efforts to talk them down failed the Team was sent up to find them. They were located just below the summit of Mardale Ill Bell at around 20.00 hrs and Team members escorted them down to Kentmere Reservoir. From here, they were taken in Team Land Rovers back to Kentmere village where their own transport was parked.
16 February 2009 11.40 hrs
The Police paged the Team’s Leader Group with a report that a flare had been seen over Whitbarrow. While attempts were being made to contact the informant, John F (who lives on the opposite side of the valley) had a drive around the area but nothing was seen. When the informant finally responded to the missed calls, it was established that the sighting had actually been on Farleton Knott and that the incident was probably bracken being burnt off. The rest of the Team were not called out.
24 February 2009 22.45 hrs
The Team was paged by the police and asked to search for a missing woman in the vicinity of Whitbarrow. Search parties were dispatched to various locations around Whitbarrow Scar and White Scar and assistance was requested from SARDA (Lakes). Sadly, the woman’s body was found at the bottom of White Scar by Search Dog Beinn (Handler – Roger of Langdale & Ambleside Team) just before 02.00 hrs. Team members then recovered her to the vehicles at Raven’s Lodge Farm.
10 March 2009 18.15 hrs
The Team was paged by the police and asked to search for a 13 year old boy who had been missing from Witherslack Hall School since about 11.00 hrs. Team members and SARDA dogs searched the Whitbarrow area. Following a report of a possible sighting, the police found the boy in the village of Holme shortly after 21.00 hrs.
22 March 2009 10.40 hrs
The police asked for assistance in searching for a missing woman in the Brigsteer area. There was genuine concern for her safety. Search Control was established using our Mobile 2 vehicle at Helsington Church and search parties covered areas between Scout Scar and Sizergh Castle and between the Church and Brigsteer Woods. The Lancashire Police Helicopter was also deployed. Assistance was also requested from SARDA Lakes, SARDA England and from the Duddon & Furness Team. These resources were just being deployed on the search when the woman was located in a house close to her home just after 13.30 hrs.
23 April 2009 10.45 hrs
A lady was running in the Eaves Wood area (near Silverdale) with her boarder collie (Nap) on the previous evening when her dog disappeared. She continued her search for him the next day and eventually spotted him trapped on a narrow ledge about 5 metres from the top of Middlebarrow Quarry with a precipitous drop below him. The police paged the Team and asked for assistance. Vehicular access to the top of the quarry was difficult but, with the assistance of a National Trust Warden, the dog was located. Belays were set up and a Team Member was lowered down to the ledge. Nap was recovered to the top of the quarry, checked over and found to be none the worse for his ordeal. One happy doggie and one happy lady owner. – Thanks to Alan (the Warden) for the photographs.
9 May 2009 18.35 hrs
The police paged the Team’s Leader Group with regard to a possible missing person. Our Team Leader spoke to the informant and after a short while the missing person was located in Patterdale. The informant drove from Kentmere to collect him and there was no need to call out the rest of Team.
15 May 2009 16.15 hrs
The Team was asked to assist the Ambulance Service in recovering an 18 year old male from Oxenholme Wood. The casualty had slipped and was in some discomfort with possible leg and back injuries. He was stretchered to the waiting ambulance.
17 May 2009 19.00 hrs
The police paged the Team’s Leader Group with regard to a missing person in the Lyth Valley. While our Team Leader was speaking to the police, the missing person turned up and there was no need to call out the rest of Team.
23 May 2009 21.40 hrs
The police paged the Team’s Leader Group with regard to a missing vulnerable person. We were held on standby while the police made further enquiries and we were stood down at 23.10 hrs after the missing person was located by the police. There was no need to call out the rest of Team.
25 May 2009 16.30 hrs
The Team was asked to assist the Ambulance Service with a 51 year old male who had fallen from a mobility scooter near Cockmoss Bridge in the Lyth Valley. The incident was on a rough track well away from the public highway so the Paramedic from the Ambulance Service was transported to the scene in a team member’s 4×4 vehicle. The casualty (a local man) was found to have driven his scooter into a ditch. He was wet and cold, with a relatively minor cut on his head and he elected to be taken home. We also recovered his mobility scooter and his spectacles from the ditch.
6 June 2009 14.00 hrs
A number of Team Members and Supporters were acting as Marshalls on the 2009 Garburn Fell Race (see News & Events page for photographs). Just as the final runners passed the high point of the route near Kentmere Park four Swiss walkers approached a Team Member and enquired whether they were in Troutbeck (which they weren’t). As they were staying in Windermere and the weather was pretty grim they elected to be led from the fell and transported to Staveley from where they could catch a bus (after a suitable interlude in the Eagle & Child PH).
9 June 2009 21.25hrs
The Team was called to assist a 21 year old female who had fallen while climbing on “The Rakes” at Hutton Roof Crags. The Ambulance Service was also in attendance. The casualty was found to have fallen between 2 and 3 metres and to have sustained an injury to her lower leg. Her leg was splinted and she was stretchered down to the waiting ambulance. A local First Responder also attended the incident.
18 June 2009 18:45hrs
North West Ambulance requested the Team’s help with the evacuation of an injured person at Millthrop Nr Sedbergh. There were ample team members at base for a driver training theory evening, and two vehicles were despatched. Whilst on route the team were stood down as the Ambulance crew had local assistance in the form of a 4WD Landrover.
19 June 2009 13:00hrs
The Team were asked to assist the Fire Service who had been called to rescue a cow from a stream at Cartmel. The cow had been there all night and seemed unable to move, a local farmer with a tractor with a rear board on reversed up the stream and the cow was rolled on to the board and strapped down. The cow was taken to a nearby farm to enable a vet to examine her.
28 June 2009 02:00hrs
Yes, 2am! The police received a report of a light flashing a morse SOS from Gummers How. The Team was paged and Gummers How and the surrounding area was searched. Nothing was found. There were no reports of missing persons and the police agreed that the search be called off at 06.00 hrs. – The initial report from a Scout Leader at the Great Tower camp site, Windermere was recorded as good intent.
25 July 2009 16:30hrs
The Langdale & Ambleside Team received two call-outs at about the same time. Both were ankle injuries and both were likely to require fairly long and steep carry-offs so they called for our assistance. We deployed one Land Rover to the end of Mickleden and Team Members ascended the Rossett Gill path to assist with the recovery of the casualty from a location close to Angle Tarn. Our other two vehicles went to the New Dungeon Ghyll and the rest of the Team ascended the Mark Gate path to assist with the recovery of the casualty from the Col between Pike of Stickle and Harrison Stickle.
11 August 2009 12.15hrs
The Team was called to assist the North West Ambulance Service with a 67 year old female from Bolton who had slipped on a path in Craggy Wood, Staveley. She was found to have sustained an injury to her left elbow and she was in significant pain.. Paramedics immobilised the injured arm and administered pain relief before we stretchered the casualty up through the wood to the top of the hill where the North West Air Ambulance had landed and was waiting to transfer her to hospital in Lancaster.
23 August 2009 17.50hrs
The Team’s Leader Group was paged by the police regarding an overdue runner in the Sedbergh area. The missing person turned up safe and well while enquiries were being made and there was no need to call out the Team.
26 August 2009 13.55hrs
The Team was requested by the police to assist the North West Ambulance Service with the evacuation of two casualties from the vicinity of the Pepperpot Monument in Eaves Wood near Silverdale. We arrived at the Monument and after a brief search of the area we were unable to find anyone. Further enquiries were put in hand and after a short time we were informed that the casualties had managed to walk down with the Ambulance Crew via another path. Still, we enjoyed the walk in the rain!
28 September 2009 18.00hrs
The Team was paged by the police and asked to assist in the recovery of a body from Hagg Wood in Arnside.
23 October 2009 08.00hrs
The Team was asked to assist Lancashire Police and the Bowland Pennine Team with a major search for a missing person to the east of Broughton near Preston. SARDA and several other teams were also involved. Unfortunately, no find was made while we were involved.
4 November 2009 14.30hrs
The Langdale & Ambleside team requested our assistance with a lone male walker who had sustained a lower leg injury. He was close to the summit of Crinkle Crags (Long Top – above the “Bad Step”) and this would require a long carry-off if helicopter evacuation proved to be impossible. Approaching dusk and low cloud made for very difficult flying conditions but after some time and several attempts the SeaKing pilot managed to find a gap in the cloud and winched the casualty up and off to hospital in Carlisle. This allowed us to get back to base just in time for our AGM! (see News & Events page).
19 November 2009 10.00hrs
The Team was paged by the police and requested to assist the emergency services during serious flooding. Incidents included transferring a casualty between Windermere and Ulverston, dealing with a road traffic collision on the A6 near Levens, attending an elderly woman with chest pains in Levens Village, transporting equipment to set up an emergency reception centre at a school in Kendal, traffic duties at the A590/A6 junction which was partially closed by flooding and assisting the police at flooding in the village of Burneside. Our base was manned all night and untill 11am on 20 November.
21 November 2009 13.30hrs
The police asked us to carry out a search for a missing woman in the Kirkby Lonsdale area. The search continued until dusk but, unfortunately, we found no sign of her. Apologies to all those who missed us in the Town during the afternoon – but duty calls!
22 November 2009 08.30hrs
An empty canoe was found on the River Kent and the police asked the team to search the banks of the river down to the estuary for the occupant. No one was found and the search was called off.
28 November 2009 14.20hrs
We were called to assist the Langdale & Ambleside Team when they were committed to a rescue on the northern edge of Bow Fell and received a second call, this time to Troutbeck Park. This second incident involved a young woman of 18 years old who slipped while descending west from the summit of Yoke with a large group of Girl Guides. She took quite a long tumbling fall and sustained suspected head, neck and leg injuries, although she remained conscious. A SeaKing helicopter from RAF Boulmer had evacuated a casualty from the other L&A job and returned to assist at Troutbeck Park. The casualty was winched into the helicopter and flown to hospital in Carlisle. It would be very impolite of us to mention that L&A got one of their Land Rovers bogged down on Longmire Road (was the clue in the title?), so we won’t!
4 December 2009 15.00hrs
The Team was placed on standby after the police began receiving reports of a gyrocopter coming down to the west of Kendal in the Boundary Bank / Kendal Fell Quarry area. Nothing was found and the Team was stood down later in the afternoon.
7 December 2009 13.40hrs
The Team was paged by the police and requested to join a search for a missing male in the vicinity of Fell Foot, Lake Windermere. We joined with teams from Duddon & Furness and Langdale & Ambleside and SARDA dog handlers in a search of the lake shore and the banks of the River Leven. The Coastguard and Lake Wardens were also involved in the search. Search parties were stood down as darkness fell and an underwater search team found a body in the lake shortly afterwards.
20 December 2009 10.50hrs
The Team was asked to assist the Police and the North West Ambulance Service due to heavy snow in the area. Our Land Rovers were used on various incidents including attending a man in Sedbergh who had fallen and had probably dislocated his shoulder. He was treated by team members and transferred to an ambulance at Junction 37 on the M6 for onward transport to hospital in Lancaster.
While this was on the go, reports came in that a young woman had decided to walk to her parents home in Sedbergh from Oxenholme Station dragging a suitcas. One of our Land Rovers was despatched, with Police Officer on board, to make an attempt to find her. Back at base, while trying to make telephone contact, the team leader was speaking to her mother when thankfully she turned up having been given a lift by a local lady in a 4×4.
22 December 2009 11.55hrs
With more over night snow, today we assisted in transferring a gentleman from Dent to Kendal for dialysis treatment. To avoid tying up vehicles on long jobs we arranged for the Cave Rescue Organisation (CRO) to assist in transporting the patient as far as the M6 Motorway where we transferred him to our vehicle for onward transport.
22 December 2009 17.30hrs
The Team was paged by the Police and asked to assist the North West Ambulance Service who were having difficulties in reaching a patient in Selside. A Land Rover with two team members was dispatched and the gentleman was transported to the nearest hospital for treatment for a possible DVT.
22 December 2009 22.00hrs
We were requested to transport a care worker to a house in Kendal for overnight stay.
23 December 2009 07.00 hrs
The overnight care worker was picked up an taken home.
23 December 2009 09:00hrs
Another care worker was taken to a house in the village of Crook where access was difficult. Team members waited and returned the care worker back to Kendal.
24th December 2009
Transport was provided for care workers again. Transport was also provided for a dialysis patient, this time the inward trip was a joint effort with CRO and the return trip was dealt with by Kendal MRT.
25TH December & 26th December 2009
Transport was provided again for the care worker to the Crook location.
