Seal Bank, Hexham

A female in her 70s had fallen down a steep bank near on the edge of Sele Park in Hexham. Injured in her fall and unable to move, a call was made to the North East Ambulance Service. Given the difficult to access nature of the likely location, as the NEAS resources were travelling to the scene, Mountain Rescue were requested.

With two vehicles – Key Mobile and Curlew Echo – already crewed having just finished a response driver training course, these were swiftly dispatched. Members from both North of Tyne Mountain Rescue Team and ourselves were also called out and requested to travel direct to the RVP.

Soon after the first Mountain Rescue personnel arrived at the RVP it was confirmed that a NEAS crew had located the patient down towards the river. As members made their way to the incident site, others readied vital rescue equipment including a warm winter weight casualty bag.

The female was stabilised and transferred onto a lightweight Titan stretcher and wheel for the awkward but relatively swift evacuation to the nearest road. Some boggy ground down by the river, steep muddy banks, narrow paths and a set of steps provided a few obstacles along the way. The female was then handed over to the NEAS crew and the Teams stood down.

We wish the female well for a full and swift recovery.

The incident involved 22 Team members for 3 hours.