DMRT news

Mon 18 May 2009 :: South Yorkshire Search

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called out to search for a missing person in Skellow near Doncaster over the weekend. The 61 year old man was reported missing from a care home on Saturday evening and the team were called out at 11:00pm later that night.

Seventeen members of the Derby team, accompanied by 15 members from the Woodhead Mountain Rescue Team and 2 search and rescue dogs searched throughout the night for the vulnerable man. They were supported by South Yorkshire Police, a police helicopter and South Yorkshire Fire and Rescue service, who used their thermal imaging equipment to search the waterways in the area.

The man was not located during the search and the team were stood down at 8:00 am on Sunday morning. Police are continuing their investigations into the disappearance and have launched an appeal for information as to his whereabouts.

Being in Yorkshire, this is the fifth county that the team have been called to so far this year, with rescues having previously taken place in Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Nottinghamshire and Staffordshire.

Mon 01 Jun 2009 :: Dovedale Callout

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called out to Dovedale on Sunday evening (May 31st) to assist in the rescue of a 14 year old girl, who had fallen whilst descending a steep scree slope on Thorpe Cloud, sustaining injuries to her head, back and arm. Over 20 members of the team were called out by pager at about 7:00pm to the beauty spot near Ashbourne. An ambulance crew and a Midlands Air Ambulance team were already on scene treating the casualty, but her location half way up the dangerous slope necessitated the use of mountain rescue personnel and equipment to evacuate her. Ropes and a specialized stretcher were used to lower the casualty to the ground and she was then carried along the banks of the river to the waiting helicopter where she was then taken to hospital for further treatment.

Whilst this incident was taking place, a member of the public alerted the team to a missing group of walkers. Two boys, aged 14 and 15 years old had separated from the rest of their group. The 40 year old father of one of the boys had also taken a different route and neither party had returned when expected. Once the mountain rescue members had evacuated the injured woman, they began to mobilise to search for the missing people. As the team were beginning to deploy, all 3 turned up safe and well.

Mon 08 Jun 2009 :: Dovedale Revisited

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

On Saturday (June 6th), team were called to Dovedale, near Ashbourne, to rescue a 14 year girl who had slipped whilst descending a steep muddy path above Ilam Rock, causing an injury to her knee in the process. Nineteen members of the team responded to the call-out. She was treated on scene by a team paramedic and carried on a stretcher by team members for several kilometers to an ambulance waiting in the nearby village of Milldale. She was then transported to Stoke hospital for further treatment.

This is the third time in 5 weeks that the team has been called to Dovedale to rescue a person slipping whilst descending steep ground. Last week the team were called out to another 14 year girl who had slipped whilst coming down Thorpe Cloud injuring her head and at the beginning of May, a woman fell whilst descending a different path above Lover’s Leap, causing injuries to her arm.

Sun 28 Jun 2009 :: Parachute Accident

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

A member of the Royal Artillery’s “Black Nights” Parachute Display Team was injured on Saturday (27th June) during a display jump at the Duffield Carnival. The 24 year old male landed very heavily and sustained a suspected fracture to his lower leg and ankle.

Derby Mountain Rescue Team had been at the Carnival with one of their team vehicles and just prior to the accident had been demonstrating the use of their vacuum mattress and vacuum splints, as used to treat such injuries. Team members rushed to the injured man and administered first aid. A local GP and nurse, who had been part of the crowd watching the display, were also on hand as were the Civil Aid voluntary service who had been providing first aid cover for the event.

Rescue Team members put their demonstrations into practice and splinted the injured leg and then, due to the possibility of a spinal injury, placed the man into their vacuum mattress. This is a specialised piece of equipment designed to protect a casualty’s entire body and is normally carried by mountain rescue teams rather than the more common spinal boards as casualties that mountain rescue encounter may well be encased for prolonged periods and the mattress is far more comfortable for the injured person and far more suitable for difficult terrain.

The man was then transported to Derby City Hospital by East Midlands Ambulance service, where he was diagnosed as having a fracture of the fibula.

A team spokesman said: “It was lucky that our members and equipment were close to hand and that so many other resources were available on scene. We wish the man a speedy recovery and look forward to seeing him jump in a future display – but without the dramatic ending”.

Wed 22 Jul 2009 :: Hilltop Rescue

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called out on Tuesday evening (21st July 2009) to Bunster Hill at Dovedale to rescue a woman who had injured her ankle whilst out walking with her husband and two young children.The woman had twisted her ankle earlier in the day but had been able to carry on. Later, as the weather deteriorated, the family decided to make their way down the high ridge of Bunster Hill back to their car when the woman went over on her ankle causing a painful sprain or possible fracture.

The team arrived on scene first and climbed the hill to administer first aid whilst a Midlands Air Ambulance tried to make their way to the location. The weather was worsening and the air ambulance was unable to land in the immediate vicinity and was forced to land much further along the ridge in a lower position.

The woman was carried by stretcher along the side of the slippery steep ridge to the waiting helicopter but due to the worsening conditions the helicopter was now unable to take off.The team used their Land Rover to drive across fields to get as close to the scene as possible and the woman was then carried from the helicopter to the vehicle and transported back down to the road, where she was transferred to hospital by road ambulance.

The air ambulance crew had made arrangements to leave the aircraft on the hill overnight but a sudden break in the weather allowed them to lift off and return to base.

Fri 31 Jul 2009 :: Deja View!

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

On Thursday evening (30th July), the team were called out to a Dovedale beauty spot for the second time in just over a week, to rescue a 12 year old girl who had slipped and injured her lower leg. The girl had been out for a walk, accompanied by her younger brother and sister and their guardian, when the incident happened as they crossed the steep slippery ground along the top of Bunster Hill.

Nineteen members of the team and two First Responders from West Midlands Ambulance Service attended the scene, splinting the injured leg and carrying her across the ridge of the hill by stretcher to a waiting team Land Rover. She was then transported to a WMAS road ambulance to be transferred to hospital. Other team member’s 4x4 vehicles also accompanied the team vehicle to help transport equipment and the rest of the family back down to where their car was parked..

Just over a week ago,the team attended a similar incident just yards from the same spot. On that occasion, a woman had slipped and injured her ankle. An air ambulance had tried to evacuate her but had been stranded by the deteriorating weather and visibility, leaving the team to evacuate the casualty by stretcher and Land Rover.

Mon 03 Aug 2009 :: WInch Mob

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

At the weekend, the team had an unusual training day when they were joined by a Sea King search and rescue helicopter from RAF Rescue for joint training at Harborough Rocks, near Carsington Water.

Mountain Rescue teams often work very closely with helicopters during their activities. Air Ambulances are frequently used to take casualties to hospital from the remote locations where they might be found and Police helicopters are often used during searches fro missing people. The RAF Rescue helicopters, in addition to both of these tasks, can also be used to deploy rescue personnel to difficult to reach locations far quicker than teams could get there on foot and also have the ability to winch casualties and team members in and out of the aircraft when there is no suitable landing area. It was this aspect of operations that the joint training exercise concentrated on.

After briefings from the air crew a tour of the aircraft, small groups of team members were dispatched to various locations in the surrounding area to practice being winched into the helicopter, together with their equipment and transported to the exercise’s “deployment” area.

A team spokesman said: “This is one of the more difficult training exercises to arrange , but is invaluable in saving time when the team are deployed in this way in a real incident. It also happens to be an enjoyable day for the members, who after several recent incidents where heavy equipment has had to be carried up very steep hills, would be only too happy to have RAF Rescue available at most call outs”.

As so often happens during such events, the helicopter was called away to an incident and the exercise was ended prematurely.

Wed 12 Aug 2009 :: Incident at Black Rocks

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called out at 15:15 on Monday (11th August) to an incident at Black Rocks, near Cromford. A 40 year old climbing instructor had suffered a fatal collapse whilst setting up for a lesson on top of a rocky pinnacle in the popular tourist spot.

The team were requested by police to recover the man from the top of the crag. Due to the inaccessible location, a specialised rescue stretcher and rope system was used to lower the man to the ground from the peak.

The instructor was about to give a climbing lesson to a group of children and had been rigging up ropes at the top of the rock for the session when the incident occurred. The cause of death is not yet known but it is believed that the cause was medical and that no accident took place.

The team would like to pass on their condolences to the man’s family and friends.

Fri 14 Aug 2009 :: Dovedale Search

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

In what has proved to be a busy week, the tam were called out last night (Thursday 13th August to search for a missing 40 year male who had been staying at Ilam youth Hostel.

The team were called at 23:00 after the man had failed to return from a walk earlier in the day and his wife had alerted police. He had last been seen at approximately 15:00 that afternoon by the Stepping Stones at Dovedale.

Twenty three members of the team, supported by 3 search and rescue dogs from the region, searched the area throughout the night but the man was not located within the search area.

The team were stood down at around 6:00 on Friday morngin, with the possibility of resuming the search later in the morning if the man had not been located. Before the search was resumed, he walked into Ilam Hall Youth Hostel at 10:56 on Friday morning. As yet, there are no details about what had happened to him.

This was the second callout on Thursday, with the team being called out to search for another missing person in the Leek area that afternoon. On that occasion the missing person was located by police before the team arrived on scene and the team were stood down en route.

Wed 26 Aug 2009 :: DMRT On Facebook

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team have set up a new presence on Facebook where visitors to the page can follow the team's activities, view photos, leave comments, join discussions, etc. If you have a Facebook account, just log on and search for Derby Mountain Rescue Team or just go to the following link Derby Mountain Rescue Team on Facebook

This page is intended to give far more details regarding the teams activities than can be shown on the team website, including training exercises, social events, team related photos and anything else that may be of interest to members and supporters of the team. It is hoped to make some aspects of the page as real-time as possible, including live updates of call outs.

We welcome input on the site and hope visitors will feel free to post comments or join in discussions

Mon 31 Aug 2009 :: Another Busy Weekend

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

In what has been a busy period for the team and according to recent reports, all mountain rescue teams, Derby Mountain Rescue were called to three incidents over the bank holiday weekend.

The first callout was to search for a missing 39 year old despondent man on late Saturday afternoon in the Tansley area of Matlock. Police had called the team when phone signals had put the man in the Tansley area which is a rural location with many fields and wooded areas that had to be searched. Twenty nine rescuers and 4 search and rescue dogs searched for 6 hours but the operation was stood down as night fell and phone signals indicated the man was still on the move, possibly heading out o the search area.

The following day, the team were at a promotional and fundraising day at Dovedale when they received reports of an injured woman. The 44 year old woman had been descending a path down from Thorpe Cloud with her family when she slipped on wet rocks and injured her ankle. Team members treated her on scene before carrying her the rest of the way down and across the river on a specilaised stretcher to a waiting ambulance. She was then taken to the Royal Derby Hospital.

During the day, the team raised £447 from public donations and also dealt with several other minor incidents, including a lost boy and an asthmatic child who needed minor treatment.

On the Monday, the team were again called out to Dovedale to evacuate an injured walker who had slipped 80 feet down a path from Thorpe Cloud. The team were stood down whilst en route as the air ambulance managed to evacuate the casualty without ssistance.

This was the 9th callout that the team had dealt with in August and the 27th of the year, exceeding the total annual callouts for the previous 3 years. Nobody has been able to explain why Derby and most other rescue teams have witnessed a large increase in callouts this year but one popular theory is that the recession has brought many more people out to enjoy relatively cheap entertainments of the English and Welsh countryside.

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Wed 02 Sep 2009 :: Urban Search

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

In the early hours of the morning on Wednesday 2nd September, the team were called to Breadsall Village to search for a missing 86 year old man who had last been seen by his family 6 hours earlier. Twenty members of the team were paged at just after midnight and converged on a local school car park to start the search operation. The man was located by team members within two hours of the initial call out. He was found safe and well down a wooded embankment close to his home. He had been out walking and had got into difficulty after descending some rough steps in the embankment and had been unable to get back up again.

He was escorted by team members up to the main track and walked to a waiting EMAS ambulance, where he was taken to the Royal Derby Hospital to be checked over.

This was an unusual call out for the team, being more of an urban location than most searches, but as the surrounding area features tracks and small amounts of woodland, the police decided that the specialised skills of a mountain rescue team were appropriate for the situation.

Fri 25 Sep 2009 :: Ready to Descend

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

Team members have spent the day setting up for the weekend's sponsored abseil down Derby Cathedral's historic tower, which at 212ft, is the second tallest tower in the country.

More than 150 people will descend the tower by rope over the Saturday and Sunday (from 9:00am on Saturday and from 11:30 am on Sunday). Abseilers include the Mayor of Derby, Sean Marshall, the (very!) High Sheriff, Canon Elaine Jones from the Cathedral and Howard Ebison from BBC's The Apprentice.

The team will be out in force on both days with the team vehicles and displays set up for the interest of spectators.

Tue 29 Sep 2009 :: Cathedral Abseil

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

This weekend (September 26/27), the team held it’s sponsored abseil from the historic tower of Derby Cathedral. Over the two days, 157 abseilers took the plunge (not literally – they all went down at a safe pace!), raising over £25,000 in pledges which will be shared between the rescue team and Derby Cathedral Chapter.

The weather held out for the event and there was little wind making for ideal conditions for those taking part. On the Saturday, the Mayor of Derby, Councillor Sean Marshall was one of the early descenders followed shortly afterwards by the High Sheriff of Derbyshire, Sir Henry Every and his 3 sons. They were accompanied on the ground by Miss England 2008, Laura Coleman, who came along to support Sir Henry and his family.

Later entrants included Howard Ebison from BBC TV’s The Apprentice and Jean Martin, a disabled grandmother and sufferer of cerebral palsy who, despite requiring the use of two sticks to walk, managed to climb all 212 feet and 190 steps of the tower to make her descent, landing to rapturous applause from the assembled supporters and onlookers.

On the Sunday, one of the first abseilers was Canon Elaine Jones, who made her descent shortly after the morning service, still dressed in her cassock. Despite initial trepidation, she overcame her fears and bravely took the “scenic” route down, accompanied by the cheers of her congregation.

Perhaps the most audible abseiler was lifestyle coach Jody Bunting from Channel 4’s Big Breakfast. Jody could be heard over half of Derby as he descended the tower resplendent in a fluorescent pink skin-tight jump suit and gigantic white furry boots.

Despite the fact that over 150 people made the descent, the vast majority of whom were complete novices, team members were very rarely required to assist with participants getting into difficulty on the way down. When team members did assist, it was more to offer support and advice rather than rescue. All abseilers made it to the bottom under their own control, although a safety rope under the control of the team was attached at all times ensuring their complete safety.

For the team, it was a hectic weekend with abseils scheduled to take place every 4 minutes but thanks to excellent coordination, everything ran smoothly.

We’d like to say a big thank you to all abseilers and their sponsors for making the weekend the huge success that it was.

The team's Facebook page will shortly contain an album of photos from the weekend once all photos have been collated and a suitable selection chosen.

Fri 02 Oct 2009 :: If the shoe fits....keep it on

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called out to Thorpe Cloud near Dovedale on the 2nd October in order to rescue a stranded walker.

A 74 year old man had walked up the popular local hill but had got into difficulty near the top when he reached the steeper slopes. He had been wearing unsuitable footwear and had found that he had insufficient grip for the terrain. In an attempt to improve his grip, he had removed his shoes but found that it was still too difficult to go forward. He then attempted to remove his socks to see if that helped but unfortunately dropped his shoes which rolled down the hill, leaving him unable to progress in any direction.

Thirteen members of the volunteer emergency services responded to his call for assistance as well as the DLRAA (Derbyshire Leicestershire & Rutland) Air Ambulance. The DLRAA helicopter was able to drop two of it’s crew on the hill top whilst rescue team members ascended from below.

The man was found to be uninjured and was walked off the hill with the support of the air ambulance crew and rescue team members. His shoes were never located.

A team spokesman said: “This situation just goes to show how important it is to have suitable footwear when walking on the hills. Luckily on this occasion the man was not injured, but falls and injuries are only too common in this type of situation”.

Mon 12 Oct 2009 :: Thorpe Search

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called out to Thorpe, near Dovedale, in the early hours of Saturday morning (10th October) to search for a missing 21 year old vulnerable woman.

Police had contacted the team after receiving information that the woman was located somewhere in the vicinity of Thorpe Pasture. Team members were alerted by pager just before midnight on Friday and assembled at Thorpe Car Park to begin the search. The team managed to make contact with the missing person by mobile phone and started to search nearby hills when a light alerted rescuers to Hamston Hill, where the woman was located. Although cold, she was relatively unhurt, but was examined by a team paramedic and doctor before being evacuated by stretcher to a team Land Rover at the bottom of the hill. She was then transported to the road, where she was transferred to an EMAS (East Midlands Ambulance Service) ambulance and taken to the Royal Derby Hospital to be checked over.

Fourteen members of the team were involved in the search, with more members turning back whilst en route when the team were stood down once the woman had been located.

Tue 17 Nov 2009 :: City Centre Collection

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

Last weekend (Saturday 14th November), the team took to the streets of Derby city centre as part of their annual public awareness and fund-raising day.

With the team's vehicles and giant climber mascot situated at points along St Peters Street and team members and supporters located at points all across the city centre, the team collected £3130 during the course of the day.

The team would like to thank all those who contributed and also those supporters who came along to help the team on the day.

Mon 14 Dec 2009 :: Pay It With Flowers

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The Mickleover Floral Art Group have raised £1000 for local charities during the last year and on Tuesday night (9th December) presented the team with a cheque for £500.

The money had been raised by the 60 strong group by means of a “penny box” at their monthly meetings, selling produce from the chairman’s allotments, selling pickles made by the group treasurer from the chairman’s produce and by various other charity nights held throughout the year.

Chairman Robin Cobb and vice-chairman Carol Beard, presented the cheque to the team’s fundraising officer, Robin Goodchild at the start of the group’s annual general meeting, held at a packed St. Johns Church Hall in Devonshire Drive.

A second cheque for £500 was presented to the Derby and District Talking Newspaper Association, who provide audio tapes of newspapers for the blind and partially sighted.

Sat 06 Mar 2010 :: Multi-Agency Rescue

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called out on Friday (5th March) to Thor’s Cave in the Manifold valley to help rescue a man who fallen 50ft down a precipitous slope after falling off the path whilst descending from the cave.

The man, in his fifties, had been out walking with his wife when the accident happened. They had visited the popular local attraction and were making their way back down to the valley floor when he stumbled and fell from the path down a steep slope, coming to a rest against a tree 50 ft above the river and sustaining injuries to his ribs, wrist, face and head

In a multi service rescue, seventeen members of the Derby team were called along with a Wetton & Alstonfields Community First Responder, police officers, two WMAS ambulance crews and a WMAS incident controller, Derbyshire Fire Service, Staffordshire Fire Service, including their specialist Rope Rescue Unit, the Hazardous Area Response Team and two air ambulances from the Midlands Air Ambulance and the Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland Air Ambulance services. Over 30 people were involved in the rescue, made difficult by the very steep terrain and loose earth in at the incident site

When the team arrived on scene after being called out at 13:45, the ambulance and fire service had already reached the casualty and had put him into a scoop stretcher ready for evacuation and were awaiting the specialist rescue teams. DMRT members arrived on site and transferred the casualty to their rescue stretcher and were then able to carry the stretcher to the valley floor, aided by a rope system. The casualty was then carried across the river to be transferred to hospital by helicopter

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Tue 04 May 2010 :: Busy Bank Holiday

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

A busy bank holiday weekend saw the team attend three incidents over the period.

On Monday, May 3rd, the team were stationed at Dovedale for a PR and fund-raising event as part of the national Mountain and Cave rescue Awareness day that most mountain rescue teams were taking part in. During the afternoon, a man out walking in the area with his family tripped and injured his ankle. His wife, being aware of the team’s presence in the area, asked for assistance. Team members carried the man by stretcher across the River Dove to a waiting team Land Rover. He was then driven to his car where the family were advised to travel to their nearest A&E department to have the ankle examined.

On the Sunday of the weekend, the team were called to Black Rocks late on Sunday evening, where a mountain biker had had an accident whilst descending from the hill as night fell. He had sustained facial injuries and due to the nature of his accident, was treated as possibly having a spinal injury. He was treated on scene by a team doctor and again evacuated by stretcher to the Land Rover, where he was then driven over 1km on the High Peak Trail to an EMAS ambulance for transport to hospital.

The weekend had started off on Saturday afternoon, with a call to Stanton Moor to assist a woman out walking her dog, who had also tripped and injured her ankle. She had slipped close to the historic bronze age stone circle, the Nine Ladies and had walked a short distance on the injured foot before finding herself unable to continue. Team members examined her on scene and evacuated her by stretcher to where the team Land Rover had managed to gain access. She was then transported to an EMAS road ambulance to be taken to Chesterfield hospital for further treatment.

Fri 11 Jun 2010 :: Team Member Receives Mayor's Award

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

Congratulations go to team member Jonty Roe, who was awarded an Erewash Borough Council Mayor's Award for his 38 years of voluntary service with Derby Mountain Rescue Team.

The annual awards are given to residents of Erewash Borough who have given exceptional service to the community over the years. Jonty had been nominated by wife Jennie for his many years of service with mountain rescue and he was selected by a council committee as a worthy recipient of the award. In typical Jonty fashion, he had endeavoured to keep the nomination secret from the rest of his team mates and was somewhat surprised to see myself with a camera skulking outside lkeston Town Hall, where the ceremony was due to take place.

Jonty is one of the longest serving operational members within the team and has served as radio officer for the last 25 years. He is still very much an active member of the team in training and callouts as well as serving on the operational management group.

Keeping it in the family, Jonty's mother was one of the first recipients of an award back in 1980 when they were first introduced, receiving it for going beyond the call of duty with her services as a community nurse.

Wed 18 Aug 2010 :: Major Search in Goyt Valley

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called out to the Goyt Valley, near Buxton, to join in a large scale search for a 56 year old missing woman. Buxton and Kinder teams had been called out at 1:00 am after Derbyshire Police had contacted them following the discovery of the missing woman's car in a car park by Errwood Reservoir.

After searching throughout the night, the Derby team, along with members of Glossop and Kinder team joined the operation after being called out at 6:30am. The search teams included 5 search and rescue dogs, including one that had come down from the Calder Valley team in the mid Pennines. A police helicopter was also used in the operation.

Derby base vehicle takes over as control

During the day, the search was interrupted when team members had to go to the aid of a 22 year old man who had sustained leg injuries after jumping into the reservoir for a swim. He misjudged the water line and fell about 20 feet onto rocks. He was treated by mountain rescue team members and evacuated to an air ambulance for onward transport to hospital.

By the evening, Woodhead mountain rescue also joined in the search, accompanied by further members of the Buxton team. As the light started to fade, the missing woman was eventually located in an area north of Fernilee Reservoir. She was treated on scene by a mountain rescue doctor and transported to hospital by ambulance for treatment.

Over 100 mountain rescuers from five separate teams were involved throughout the day. Some of these members, who had been at the start of the search, actually returned later on to carry out a second shift. The search area of the Goyt Valley encompassed a huge region and included dense woodland, water and vast open areas. It was only through the combination of all the resources that the woman was successfully located. The whole operation showed how different teams can work together seamlessly to achieve a common objective.

In an operation like this, small groups of searchers will be tasked with clearing specific areas. Each party will consist of between 4 and 6 members, although some parties may be made up of more personnel should the search area require it. They will use a variety of methods, appropriate to the terrain, to clear their designated search area before being tasked to the next area. SARDA (Search and Rescue Dogs Association) dogs will also be tasked to clear specific areas. In these cases an entire area will be cleared by the dog accompanied only by it's handler and a navigator. The dogs sniff the air for human scent and are directed by their handlers to follow specific patterns to give the dogs the best chance of picking up a scent. The dogs are even able to distinguish between the scents of an injured, prone casualty and a healthy person moving about.

The search controllers will have groups or dogs clear the most likely search areas first, moving onto less likely areas as the operation continues. The likelihood of finding a casualty in a specific area is determined by the facts available and the statistical research carried out by mountain rescue on all the different scenarious undertaken by teams over the years. This research provides controllers with behavious patterns for different types of casualties enabling them to make informed decisions about where to concentrate the efforts.

The pictures below, taken from one search party during the day, shows some of the terrain encountered by just one group. Many other groups with equally difficult terrain were out dUring the 20 hours that the operation lasted for.

A search party at the start of their search area. The initial part of this area was open ground, a relatively easy terrain to search

The operation involved searching through thick undergrowth, sometimes well above waist height

The search also included woodland. From relatively open areas like this, to almost impenatrable sections, all of which had to be searched

The team also had to search burnt out wooded areas, which could at times be difficult to actually walk on

Mon 23 Aug 2010 :: Second Major Search In a Week

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called on Thursday evening (19th August) at 10:00pm along with Edale Mountain Rescue and search dogs to search for a missing 44 year old man in the area of Linacre Country Park, Chesterfield. Nearly 50 team members and dogs searched throughout the night but were unable to locate the man.

The search resumed the following morning at 10:00 am, with Derby and Edale being joined by Woodhead and Buxton Mountain Rescue teams, plus search dogs. Thirty five rescuers were involved in the search but the missing person was not found in any of the areas covered and the teams were stood down in the evening. Police are continuing their enquiries.

This is the second major search in a week involving mountain rescue teams joining forces to search a vast area. On Monday, five mountain rescue teams joined forces to find a missing 56 year old woman in the Goyt Valley, near Buxton. The woman was found after a 20 hours search involving 120 rescuers and 5 search dogs. She is now recovering in hospital

Wed 25 Aug 2010 :: Night time rescue from rocky pinnacle

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

A 38 year old man became stranded on a rock spire in an area of crag known as Dovedale Church, part of Jacob’s Ladder in Dovedale. The man had climbed the spire in daylight but had been unable to descend as night fell.

The team were called out by Staffordshire Police just after 10:00pm on Monday evening (23rd August) to help locate and rescue the stranded male. Eighteen team members responded to the call and quickly located the casualty with the aid of a Police helicopter. A team climber then carried out a difficult climb in the dark to reach the top of the pinnacle and was then able to set up a rope system to allow the man to be abseiled down to the foot of the rock. He was then guided through steep woodland to the valley floor, where a waiting team Land Rover was able to take him to the Dovedale car park, to be examined by an EMAS ambulance crew.

The picture above, taken in daylight, shows the location of Dovedale Church and where the casualty was stranded

After a relatively quiet start to the summer, this is the fifth incident that the team has attended in a week and the second time that team members have had to work through the night in that period. Team members were stood down at about 3:30am and returned home to snatch a few hours sleep before many had to get up for their regular jobs.

Tue 26 Oct 2010 :: City Centre Collection

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

On Saturday (23rd October), members and supporters of the team took to the streets of Derby City Centre as part of the team’s annual public awareness and fund-raising day. The team’s vehicles and giant climber mascot were situated at points along St. Peters Street and team members were located at spots all around the city centre.

Despite the inclement weather, the team collected £2700 from generous shoppers during the course of the day. The team would like to thank all those who donated money for their continued support.

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At the moment, DMRT are trying to raise funds beyond the £18,000 annual running costs of the team to build a new headquarters to house the vehicles and equipment and provide meeting and training facilities. The team are currently situated in a rented unit and have to use alternative accommodation to hold indoor training sessions and meetings.

Tue 30 Nov 2010 :: County Coucil Issues Severe Weather Guidelines

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

In light of the severe weather conditions being experienced across Derbyshire, the Emergency Planning Division of Derbyshire county Council have just issused a set of guidelines for how to stay safe and warm during the winter in cases of emergency. They want people to look after not just themselves but elderly and vulnerable neighbours and relatives. Click here to see the the guidelines.

Mountain Rescue teams across the region, including Derby, will form part of the resources being utilised to cope with the conditions. The Derby team have already been called out to one incident in High Ridge, Matlock, where the road ambulance service was unable to reach a man with a suspected broken leg.

It is expected that the region's mountain rescue teams will be called upon to support the ambulance services many more times before winter is through, as they were during last year's severe weather conditions. This shows how mountain rescue is about far more than just mountains and is in fact a valuable emergency service for a much wider section of the community than most people realise.

Tue 25 Jan 2011 :: Norfolk Raises Funds For Mountain Rescue!

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

With what seems like a touch of irony, climbers from Norfolk are raising funds for mountain rescue.

Juliet Scott of the Norwich Climbing Club, has organised the event to raise funds for the Derby team and also the DLRAA air-ambulane. Back in September, Juliet was on a regular trip to Derbyshire with friends from the club when her friend Jim Pratt suffered a 30ft fall whilst climbing one of the most difficult routes at Black Rocks. Both the air-ambulance and the team were called to come to Jim's aid, who had suffered a fractured vertebra in the fall.

Luckily, Jim has now almost fully receovered and is back at work and climbing again, although he is still suffering from back pain as a result of his experience.

The fund-raising event that Juliet, Jim and their friends have organised takes place this Saturday (Jan 29th) at the University of East Anglia Sportspark in Norwich. It involves a series of indoor climbing challenges including speed climbs, blind-folded climbs and even climbing in wellies! The day is open to competent adult and junior climbers, with things kicking off at 5:00pm for junior climbers (children aged 8 and over) and from 7:00pm until 10:00pm for adults.

Anyone interested in attending should email Dave Reeve at peakrock@btconnect.com. Tickets for juniors cost £2.50 and for adults cost £5.

The team would like to thank Juliet, Jim and their friends for all their efforts and wish them the very best for the weekend.

Tue 08 Feb 2011 :: Norwich Event Raises Over £950 for Team

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

A fund-raising event that took place at an indoor climbing wall at the University of East Anglia's Sportspark raised £957.70 for the team.

The event was organised by friends of Jim Pratt, who was rescued by the team last year after falling 30ft from a crag at Black Rocks.

The event included climbing chalenges such as climbing in wellies, climbing blind-folded, speed-climbs and more and raised a total of £1915, which was split between DMRT and the DLRAA air ambulance, who were also involved in the rescue. The staff and customers of the venue, Sportspark, raised £700 of the total amount prior to the actual event.

The team would like to thank, Juliet, Dave, Anna, Jim and everyone else who helped organise the day and also all those who took part.

Fri 18 Feb 2011 :: Golf Course Rescue

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team, assisted by members of Edale Mountain Rescue, were called to a golf course near Chesterfield yesterday afternoon to rescue a walker who had injured her ankle.

The teams were called to Stanedge Golf Course where the 67 year old woman had got into difficulty whilst walking down a muddy woodland path through part of the course. An EMAS ambulance crew had been first on scene and called on the services of mountain rescue when they realised that they would not be able to evacuate the casualty due to the terrain.

Thirteen members of the Derby team plus three from Edale attended the incident and carried the woman by a mountain rescue stretcher through the woodland and across several holes of the course to the surprise of golfers on the fairway. She was then transferred to the waiting road ambulance, where she was taken to Chesterfield hospital for further treatment.

Fri 18 Feb 2011 :: Charity Quiz Raises Almost £500

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

Derby Daybreak Rotary Club held a charity quiz in support of both the team and New Futures Nepal, an international charity concerned with the welfare of children and adults in Nepal.

The event raised a total of £483.50, to be split betwen the two charities. It was held at Morley Hayes Hotel, who had provided the venue and facilities for free. The team would like to thank Nicky Smith and the other organisers of the night, as well as Morley Hayes Hotel.

Derby Daybreak Rotary have made DMRT and New Futures Nepal respectively their local and international charities of the year. The club has an outstanding record in raising money for charities each year and the team are very pleased to be nominated as the local charity for 2011. The next fund-raising event will be a barn dance to be held in May. More details will appear in the events section of this website as it becomes availabe.

Sat 19 Mar 2011 :: Busy week for team

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team have had a busy time attending four callouts in just over a week.In the latest incident, the team were called to rescue a walker who had fallen down a rock waterfall near Lumsdale Road in Matlock. The Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service’s Rope Rescue unit, who are based in Matlock, were on scene first and were joined by Derby team members to evacuate the casualty down a narrow path to a waiting ambulance.

As team members returned home from that incident, the team were called out again to recover an injured person from Over Hadden, near Bakewell. On this occasion, the team were stood down en route as the ambulance service had managed to evacuate the casualty.

The previous Sunday (13th March), the team, supported by four SARDA search dogs, were called to Somercotes to search for a missing woman. Sadly, the woman’s body was located within Sleetmoor Woods by a search dog and Derbyshire Police have consequently launched a murder enquiry.

The run of callouts started last Thursday evening (10th March) when the team were called to search for a missing 76 year old man in the Sandiacre area.

Fri 01 Apr 2011 :: Quiz League Raise £204

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were presented with a cheque for £204 from the Belper and District Quiz League (BDQL) at their Finals night on Thursday 31st March. The team had been nominated as the league's charity of the year and the money had been raised at a charity quiz held in January.

The team would like to thank the BDQL committee and all participating quiz team members for raising this money. We would also like to complain about the lack of mountain and rescue related questions in the quiz that resulted in the DMRT quiz team coming last on the night!

Sat 16 Apr 2011 :: Hardwick Hall Search

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

Team supported by search dogs from surrounding teams were out over two days searching the grounds and areas surrounding Hardwick Hall for a missing 41 year old man.

The man had been reported missing some days ago and his car had been found in the Hardwick Park car park by police. On Wednesday (13th April), a small search team from DMRT, accompanied by three SARDA (Search and Rescue Dogs Association) dogs and a police search team explored areas of woodland within the grounds and in the near vicinity but did not manage to locate the missing person within the areas covered.

The following evening, a more widespread search was carried out by 30 DMRT members supported by two SARDA search dogs and one Woodhead MRT member. During this search, one of the dogs discovered the body of the man in woods within the park. Police have said there are no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death and a report is being prepared for the coroner.

The team would like to send it’s condolences to the family and friends of the deceased person.

Thu 19 May 2011 :: Village Show Raises Money For Team

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The organizing committee of the Turnditch and Windley Show presented the team with a cheque for £200 at their last committee meeting.

The money was raised from the 2010 village show which also raised money for the Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland Air Ambulance. The annual show, which takes place at the beginning of September features trade stands, sideshows and displays as well as equestrian competitions and produce judging and raises money for local charities.

Committee Secretary Les Blanchon present the cheque to DMRT team member Brian Sidaway

The team are hoping to take part in the 2011 show, which takes place on September 3rd, where they will be displaying their vehicles and equipment and answering questions on the work of mountain rescue.

Wed 27 Jul 2011 :: Peak District Challenge

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

Several of Prince William and Harry’s charities had a great day out in the Peak District organised by the region’s Mountain and Cave Rescue teams on Friday, July 22nd.

The Duke of Cambridge is the patron of Mountain Rescue England & Wales (MREW) and one of his requests is that his charities work together in order to promote their work and to give opportunities to disadvantaged young people where possible. In keeping with this, the Peak District Mountain Rescue Organisation (PDMRO) put on an adventure day in support of three charities associated with the Princes.

Mike France from MREW said: “For the last three years, different regions of Mountain Rescue have organised a day of outdoor activities for young people from several associated charities. This year, the charities included Centrepoint, which provides a range of accommodation services for socially excluded homeless young people, Wellchild, which supports children and families in managing the consequences of serious illness and the Child Bereavement Charity, which supports families affected by the loss of a child or children suffering bereavement.”

The young adults from Centrepoint started the day on a high ropes course at the Hollowford Centre in Castleton, followed by a rapid descent on a zip wire before heading off for a walk up nearby Mam Tor and ending with caving at Giant’s Hole. The children from the Child Bereavement Charity spent the morning caving at Giant’s Hole before moving on to Burbage Rocks to take part in climbing and abseiling. Several families who were due to attend from Well Child were unfortunately unable to make it on the day due to the ill health of some of the children, but those that made it, along with their siblings, were treated to a guided tour of Poole’s Cavern in Buxton, followed by descending a hill by rope slide in the nearby woods as well as meeting and finding out about mountain rescue search dogs.

At the end of the day, all parties met up at Edale Mountain Rescue Team’s base in Hope for drinks and cakes. The participants were presented with certificates of achievement and gift bags filled with goods donated by local businesses.

Neil Roden, Chairman of the PDMRO said: “We were happy to take on this challenge and try to provide a very special day for all those involved and I think everyone’s in agreement that we succeeded.”

Many other rescue team members commented that it had been a fantastic day for all concerned with one saying that it had actually been his favourite day in mountain rescue after many years of service. Kevin Corcoran of Derby Mountain Rescue Team said: “Whilst it’s common for several teams to work together on a large callout, it is probably the first time that all the teams have come together for a single event and was a fantastic opportunity for us all to work together for such a worthwhile cause. All the hard work that went into putting it all together was more than rewarded by the smiles on the faces of the children on the day.”

Wed 27 Jul 2011 :: Black Rocks Rescue

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called to Black Rocks, near Cromford, where an 18 year old woman had suffered a head injury after falling over a rocky ledge.

The woman, from Parbold near Wigan, was one of several group leaders with a party of 20 children who were out for a day of scrambling and climbing, led by a local outdoor activities organization. They were part of a larger group of around 60 children and leaders from the Wigan area who were on holiday in the region.

The accident happened late on Monday afternoon (25th July) as the group were heading down a rocky route, when the woman left the path and stumbled over a ridge, falling onto rocks and sustaining head injuries.

The Derbyshire, Leicestershire and Rutland Air Ambulance were first on scene and provided initial treatment. Derby Mountain Rescue were also called due to the nature of the terrain and the difficult location of the casualty. Seventeen members of the team attended the incident and were used to package the woman in a full body splint and evacuate her by mountain rescue stretcher from the rocks to the waiting helicopter. She was given additional treatment at the side of the helicopter before being airlifted to Queen’s Medical Centre.

A team spokesman said: “We will not know the full extent of her injuries until she has been examined at hospital, but the fact that she had been wearing a helmet at the time of the incident may well have prevented a more serious outcome. We wish her a full and speedy recovery.”

Wed 10 Aug 2011 :: Lover's Rocks Incident

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called out to a 72 year old walker who had collapsed at a beauty spot known as Lover’s Leap, near Dovedale.

The man, from Kingston Upon Hull, had been out with a walking group on Sunday afternoon when he was taken ill whilst walking alongside a popular path by the side of the River Dove. Members of the group called for an ambulance and due to the location of the casualty and the nature of the incident, an air ambulance and mountain rescue were also called. Twenty members of the team responded to the incident.

Sadly, the man did not recover and was pronounced dead at the scene. The cause of death is not known at this point and the matter has been passed on to the coroner.

The team would like to pass on their condolences to the friends and family of the gentleman.

Wed 10 Aug 2011 :: Quarry Rescue

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

Derby Mountain Rescue team were called out for the third time in two days when they attended a fallen climber in a disused quarry near Matlock

.The man and his climbing partner, both believed to be in their late forties, had been climbing at the long disused quarry to the West of the town, when a rock that the climber was holding on to came away from the face, causing the man to fall. He was still attached to his climbing rope, which prevented him from falling to the ground, but unfortunately he swung heavily into the rock wall, injuring his hip.

Twenty six members of the team responded to the call, which was received at about 9:00pm on Monday evening (8th August). The EMAS Hazardous Area Response Team (HART) were also called to the incident along with an EMAS ambulance crew. The man was treated on scene for his injuries and evacuated by stretcher up a steep rock slope to a waiting team Land Rover. He was then driven to the road ambulance and taken to Chesterfield Hospital for further treatment.

A team spokesman said: “The team have actually used this quarry for a training exercise in recent months, so we were well versed in extracting casualties from this particularly difficult location.”

The previous day, the team had been called to a walker at Dovedale who had collapsed and were also asked to attend to a walker who had slipped in the hills above Matlock, but were stood down before the full team was deployed when the walker was located by police and found to be able to be evacuated without assistance.

Wed 31 Aug 2011 :: Surprise Visit From Casualty

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

On Sunday (August 28th), the team were at Dovedale as part of a fund-raising and awareness day, when a recent casualty dropped in to say thank you.

A month ago, Sarah Mercer, 18, had been one of several leaders with a party of children who had been scrambling and climbing at Black Rocks, near Cromford, when she fell 25 feet off a ledge onto rocks. She sustained a potentially serious head injury, including fractures in her face and skull and was evacuated by the team and taken by air ambulance to Queen’s Medical Centre for treatment. She was discharged from hospital a week later and has gone on to make a full recovery.

The original incident at Black Rocks where Sarah was put into a drug induced coma due to the potentially serious nature of her head injury

Sarah and her family were en route from Wigan to Sheffield when they decided to make a detour to come and meet the team and say thank you. Sarah has no recollection of the events at the time, but many of the team members on duty at Dovedale were part of the rescue operation and were only too happy to meet her and her family and to see how well she is doing. Sarah’s sister Helen is running in the Blackpool Hilton Half Marathon this coming Sunday, raising funds for the team.

Sarah meets some of her rescuers at Dovedale

This has been a busy period for the team, attending four callouts within ten days. The run of incidents started when the team were called to rescue a woman from Thorpe Cloud, also in Dovedale, after she had fallen and injured her hip. A few days later, the team were called to a motocross rider who had been thrown from his bike at Starkholmes, near Matlock. The next call was to a 13 year old girl who had slipped off the side of a steep footpath at High Tor, Matlock, and was unable to get back up and finally, the team were called to a climber at Hall Dale Quarry, again near Matlock, who had been hit by fallen rocks whilst abseiling. Unusually for the team, the awareness day at Dovedale, passed without incident. The previous visit saw the team deal with three incidents during the course of the day.

Tue 20 Sep 2011 :: Cathedral Abseil

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

Nearly one hundred fundraisers abseiled down Derby Cathedral at the weekend in support of the team and the cathedral itself, raising around £14,500 in pledges of sponsorship.

The rescue team had set up an abseiling platform at the top of the 212ft tower of the cathedral, the second highest in the country and invited members of the general public to raise sponsorship to support both the team and the Derby Cathedral Charity, which supports projects connected with the cathedral.

Superman makes his descent from the tower

Ninety one people were booked to take part over the Saturday and Sunday, including some who signed up to make the descent on the day. Despite some very windy conditions on the Saturday, most abseilers commented how much they had enjoyed the experience, even though many had been very nervous before putting themselves in the hands of the experienced rescue team. Among the adventurous participants was a partially sighted man, who bravely climbed the steep narrow stairway to the top before stepping off the edge of the tower, even though the night before, he had asked his wife exactly what abseiling was as he was unsure what he’d agreed to do. Another woman was celebrating her 40th birthday by taking part, having completed the challenge previously when the team had held the event four years earlier. The Sunday also saw the characters of Superman and Scooby-Doo make the descent in full costume, much to the delight of several children in the audience gathered below. One abseiler from Rolls Royce in Derby managed to raise close to £1700 in pledges by taking part.

Diana Cunningham from Smith's Clocks about to set off

Several groups from various organisations also took part, including six members of Ilkeston Round Table, who had had to find a last minute replacement for one of their number after he underwent an operation on his knee. Three WI members, including the president of Burnaston WI also took part, having been persuaded to sign up when a rescue team member attended one of their fundraising events. Several companies including Syntax Consutlancy and Aztec Oils also had groups of staff members taking part, supported on the ground by many of their colleagues.

The crowd look on

A local Pizza Express provided free pizzas for the team members organizing the event on both days, much to the delight of the hungry rescuers. Other refreshments were provided to the general public by members of the cathedral.

A team spokesman said: “ It was great to meet so many proud and happy abseilers and to have so many other passers by come up and ask when we’d be doing it again so that they could have a go. We’re really grateful to all of them for supporting us.”

The team were interrupted on the Sunday afternoon when they were called to an incident at Leashaw Woods, near Whatstandwell. All members who could be spared from the abseil and other members not involved were called out to evacuate a cyclist who had been injured whilst taking part in a national trails bike event. The rest of the abseil continued without incident and the missing members returned to assist with clearing the site after the casualty had been taken to hospital.

Standing On The Shoulders Of Giants

Fri 14 Oct 2011 :: Callout to Tissington Trail

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

On Thursday afternoon (13th October), the team were called to Hartington after a 55 year old woman had collapsed whilst cycling the Tissington Trail.

The woman and a friend had been riding the popular trail and were returning to the cycle hire centre at Parsley Hay when she was taken ill. An ambulance was called and due to her location on the path, mountain rescue were also requested.

A team Land Rover was able to drive along the path and was used to evacuate the casualty back to a waiting road ambulance. The woman was then taken to Macclesfield General Hospital for further treatment. The cause of the collapse is not known at this stage.

Twelve members of the team attended the callout, which was made at 5:00pm, with others still en route being stood down once the casualty had been evacuated.

Mon 17 Oct 2011 :: Quarry Search

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called out on Sunday afternoon (16th October) to search a disused quarry for a missing person.

The man, from the Kent region, had been missing for a week when police received information that he might be in the area of Middle Peak Quarry, near Wirksworth and called on the team’s specialised skills to search the 66 acre site. Sixteen members of the team, supported by four SARDA (Search and Rescue Dogs Association) search dogs and a police helicopter carried out an extensive search of the area. The body of a man matching the missing person’s description was located by a search dog handler on an inaccessible ledge at one of the highest points in the quarry.

Rescuers being lowered to the casualty

A rope rescue system was set up in order to allow team members to reach the man from the top of the quarry and recover him to the ground. Police have said there are no suspicious circumstances surrounding the death and a report is being prepared for the coroner.

The team would like to send it’s condolences to the family and friends of the deceased man.

Sun 30 Oct 2011 :: Staunton Harold Reservoir Search

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called out by police on Friday (28th October) to search for a missing man, believed to be in the vicinity of Staunton Harold Reservoir.

The man had been missing since Wednesday and police had become concerned for his safety after his car had been found in a car park near the reservoir, a popular location for walkers. Mountain rescue were brought in to search the woodland and areas surrounding the reservoir and nearby Calke Abbey. The man was eventually located, safe and well, in a wooded nature reserve, having constructed a makeshift shelter from undergrowth.

Nineteen members of the team took part in the search, supported by 3 SARDA search dogs and a police helicopter. Police officers were also involved in searching farm buildings an properties in the surrounding area.

A mountain rescue powered boat and canoes were brought to the scene in readiness for a search of the reservoir itself, but these were not deployed as the man was located before the team’s water section were put into action.

Wed 30 Nov 2011 :: Weston-on-Trent Search

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called out by Derbyshire Police on Sunday (27th November) to search for a vulnerable 73 year old man from Weston-on-Trent, who had been reported missing.

The man, who enjoyed going for long walks, had last been seen by his wife at 9pm on Saturday evening. Police, being concerned for his safety and believing he might have been in a confused state, initially used officers and a police helicopter to search the area around his home, before calling in Derby Mountain Rescue at around 11am.

Thirty mountain rescue personnel and five SARDA search dogs carried out a detailed wide area search around Weston-on-Trent in a seven hour operation, but were stood down after darkness fell when the man was not located within the search area.

Police eventually located the missing person safe and well in the Normanton area of Derby at around 7pm, having walked the distance from his Weston home.

Tue 03 Jan 2012 :: Second Chance for Team Jackets

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

In a break from their normal method of helping people, the team recently helped homeless charities in Derby and Nottingham by donating around 50 warm waterproof jackets.

The team had replaced their official jackets recently as the previous ones neared the end of their useful life. However, whilst it was decided that the old jackets were no longer suitable for the harshest of mountain conditions, they were more than adequate to be used as warm and waterproof general purpose coats and so it was decided to find good homes for the old stock.

Most of the jackets were given to Padley Day Centre in Derby and Emmanuel House in Nottingham, both charities that provide services and facilities to homeless, vulnerable and socially excluded people in the region. The jackets will go some way to providing much needed additional warmth and resistance to the elements as the temperature drops and the weather worsens over the coming weeks.

A team spokesman said: “Whilst mountain rescue is usually concerned with finding missing people or helping people in difficulties in mainly rural areas, it’s nice in some small way to be able to help a different and disadvantaged section of society by supporting the great work of both the Padley Group and Emmanuel House.”

The remainder of the jackets will soon be en route to Rwanda, where a charity operating in the region will be putting them to good use in a completely different environment.

Tue 03 Jan 2012 :: First Callout Of Year

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team carried out it’s first callout of 2012 on the first day of the year when they were called to Hartington to evacuate an injured walker.

The 64 year old woman from Bradford had been walking along Reynards Lane in Hartington, which was extremely muddy, when she slipped and injured her right ankle. An EMAS ambulance and crew had attended the incident but due to the conditions were unable to get the casualty to the ambulance and decided to call mountain rescue to assist.

Sixteen members of the team attended the incident and a team Land Rover was used to carry the casualty from the track to the waiting road ambulance, where the woman was then taken to Macclesfield hospital for further treatment.

This was the first incident of 2012 for the team, which had seen a quiet holiday period until then, with no callouts over the Christmas break despite being on call throughout the period. Last year the team were called out 36 times, a reduction from previous years’ numbers, possibly due to the absence of snow towards the end of the year which can dramatically increase the number of calls for the team as they assist the regular emergency service in adverse conditions.

Mon 30 Jan 2012 :: Team Called to Assist Ambulance Crew in Winster

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called out on Saturday afternoon (January 28th) to assist an ambulance crew in Winster who were attending to an injured walker.

The 65 year old woman and her husband were walking along an uneven muddy path only 100 meters from the main road when she twisted her ankle, causing a possible fracture. An EMAS ambulance crew attended the incident but required the services of mountain rescue to transport the woman by stretcher to the road where she was then taken by ambulance to Chesterfield hospital for treatment.

Despite the closeness of the casualty to the road, the nature of the terrain meant that the ambulance crew would not have been able to evacuate the woman by themselves and needed to call in the team.

A team spokesman said: “This is a fairly typical incident for us, where skills practiced in extracting casualties from very difficult locations can be called upon to simply get an injured person across a muddy field.”

Thu 02 Feb 2012 :: Fall at Thorpe Cloud

webmaster@derbymrt.org.uk (Derby Mountain Rescue Team)

The team were called to Thorpe Cloud at Dovedale to a man who had fallen down a steep scree slope.

The incident happened when two men in their early twenties were descending from the popular hill down a steep slope covered with small loose pebbles. One of the men lost his footing and tumbled around 20 feet down the hill, injuring his left ankle.

The team, along with a WMAS ambulance crew, an air ambulance and the Alstonfield and Wetton First Responders attended the scene and a team Land Rover was used to ford the shallow river in order to drive the casualty back across the river and to a waiting road ambulance. He was then taken to North Staffs Hospital for further treatment.

Thorpe Cloud is the most common single location for callouts the Derby team, due in part to the steepness of the hill and the large amount of visitors who climb it all year round.