Threestoneburn Wood

Northumbria Police received a 999 call from two off-road motorcyclists, one of whom had sustained a potentially serious and painful injury having fallen from his motorcycle. The initial location received indicated the motorcyclist was in the middle of Threestoneburn Wood or rather what remains of the wood! Given the location the Police requested the North East Ambulance Service, North of Tyne Mountain Rescue Team and ourselves to respond.

With the Team out training on the Carriage Drive area above Rothbury, three response vehicles and 10 members were very swiftly deployed. Other members at the training headed back into the village to pick up their own vehicles to travel to The Dod, the designated RVP.

Whilst travelling, a PhoneFind fix confirmed the location of the injured party. They were towards the old forest edge at the low point between Hedgehope Hill and Dunmoor Hill. With the forest tracks improved for logging lorries, all three 4×4 response vehicles and shortly afterwards the Community Paramedic and a crewed ambulance reached a point 400 metres away from the injured motorcyclist.

Team members quickly reached the injured motorcyclist, where upon they were assessed by a Mountain Rescue Paramedic and Nurse. After being immobilised in a vacuum mattress for their injury, the motorcyclist was transferred to a lightweight Titan stretcher for the evacuation over a tussocky hillside back to the vehicles. The injured motorcyclist was then handed over to crewed ambulance for onward transport to hospital at just before 14.30hrs.

All that then remained was to get kit sorted and head to The Dod to update members held at that location before returning to Rothbury.

The incident involved 20 Team members for 3 hours 25 minutes.