Thrunton Woods

Incident Type: Rescue

On Wednesday afternoon, ourselves and North of Tyne Mountain Rescue Team were alerted by North East Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust to assist a walker who had a medical episode while out with a companion in Thrunton Woods. After attempting to make their own way back uphill, the pair realised the casualty was unable to continue and rightly called for assistance.

Once phone contact was established and using additional phone-based location tools, team members were able to identify the area on the eastern side of the woods near Coe Crags and Rough Castles.

Local team members and a team vehicle responded first and carefully navigated difficult forest tracks to get as close as possible to the casualty, while other volunteers began making their way to the area. Once on scene, team members carried out a medical assessment and liaised directly with the ambulance service’s critical care desk to discuss evacuation options.

Due to the patient’s condition and the limited number of rescuers initially available on scene, a number of rescue options were considered. Additional team members — including support from Border Search and Rescue Unit — continued to make their way to the location so that a stretcher evacuation could be carried out safely.

Within the hour, sufficient personnel were in place to package the casualty onto a stretcher and carefully carry them over rough woodland terrain using a stretcher wheel to assist. The casualty was then transferred to a waiting ambulance on a nearby track at 16:43 for further care.

We wish the casualty a speedy recovery and thank everyone involved for a smooth and coordinated response.

The incident involved 19 team members for 3 hours and 20 minutes including 3 from BSARU.