Colt Crag Reservoir

Incident Type: Rescue

After a quiet period, our team responded to two incidents on Saturday afternoon.

The first occurred when the North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust requested the assistance of ourselves and North of Tyne Mountain Rescue Team after a walker slipped near Colt Crag Reservoir suffering a lower leg injury.

The casualty and her partner were on the opposite side of the reservoir from the waiting ambulance crew, and the initial What3words location provided did not identify their position accurately. Our Duty Controller sent PhoneFind messages to both phones and spoke directly with the casualty’s partner, allowing their location to be confirmed on the south-western side of the reservoir.

The casualty was unable to bear weight and had been lying on the ground for over an hour, becoming increasingly cold. With a stretcher carry of at least 400 metres likely to be required, both teams were called out.

North of Tyne team members, who had been training nearby at Bellingham, were able to respond immediately, alongside members and vehicles from our team. One of our volunteers was already close to the reservoir and reached the casualty shortly after the ambulance crew, providing a blizzard blanket while additional personnel and equipment made their way to the scene.

The casualty was protected from the cold, given pain relief and had her injured leg immobilised before being placed into a casualty bag and onto a Bell stretcher. She was then carried back to the farm and handed back to the ambulance crew for onward care.

Thanks to the swift cooperation between both Mountain Rescue teams and the North East Ambulance Service, the incident was brought to a successful conclusion quickly. We wish the casualty a speedy recovery.

The incident involved 37 team members for 2 hrs 20 mins.