Incident 51/2011

With a small number of team members already at our Ladybridge Hall Base / HQ preparing for this evenings routine weekly training session, at 18.47hrs we were paged by NWAS (Lancashire) Emergency Control Centre for our assistance regards a male in distress on Winter Hill. Whilst our Team Leader Garry Rhodes MBE gathered further information in liaison with NWAS (Lancashire) ECC, other team members prepared our Land Rovers present ready for departure, whilst awaiting the imminent arrival of other responding members to our Ladybridge Hall Base / HQ.

In the interim, some of our team members local to the incident location initially given, made their way direct to the summit area of Winter Hill via the Transmitter Station access road.

With our first vehicle and our Team Leader already responding direct at 19.00hrs new information was received that the incident site was actually Rivington Pike, and members already at Winter Hill by this time were redirected to Rivington Pike, via the moorland hillside track of Georges Lane / Belmont Road.

NWAS (Lancashire) ECC also informed the team that they had mobilised the Lancashire Constabulary Air Support Unit helicopter for assistance.

At 19.08hrs, our Team Leader, BM1 and the responding NWAS Emergency Ambulance all arrived together at the base of Rivington Pike, in the vicinity of the now demolished ’Old Toilet Block,’ where from passing mountain bikers who had just descended from Rivington Pike, it was established that no persons were in distress actually on Rivington Pike summit.

Relocating quickly to the Terraced Gardens / ’New Toilet Block’ side of Rivington Pike, by 19.10hrs it was established that the casualty location was at the base of the stone steps leading to the summit of the local moorland landmark of Rivington Pike.

At 19.14hrs our Deputy Team Leader Geoff Seddon in company with the responding NWAS crew set off up the hillside to the casualty location, with other MRT resources now arriving at the ’New Toilet Block’ RVP and the Lancashire Constabulary ASU helicopter ’Oscar November 99’ landing close to the casualty site at 19.15hrs.

The casualty, a male aged 36, from the Hindley, Wigan, area, had been out walking with three other male adults, a child and three dogs. (All reportedly regular walkers in the area)

Unfortunately the man involved had suffered a seizure and collapsed during their walk. The casualty was given Oxygen, and then stretcher evacuated by team members on a mountain rescue stretcher down the hill side to the waiting Emergency Ambulance, with the Police ASU ’ON99’ departing at 19.25hrs and the casualty in the Emergency Ambulance at 19.31hrs, where his condition was further treated, stabilised and monitored.

The rest of the casualty’s party and their three dogs, were then given a lift in two team Land Rover MR Ambulances down through the Terraced Gardens, to their parked cars at Lower house car Park, saving them a long walk down, and enabling them to go to hospital sooner to be with their friend.

With most of our resources leaving the scene by 19.40hrs, one team vehicle remained behind to escort the Emergency Ambulance along the roughly surfaced stonetrack of Georges Lane, onto Chorley Old Road and onwards toRoyal Bolton Hospital.

This incident is the second time in a few days we have worked with the Lancashire Constabulary Air Support Unit helicopter ’ON99,’ and yet again another example of very close co-operative working between the Police, Ambulance and Mountain Rescue Services.

The following resources were deployed and involved in this incident:

• North West Ambulance Service (Lancashire) Emergency Control Centre, Broughton.
• North West Ambulance Service (Manchester) One Emergency Ambulance from Bolton North Ambulance Station, two crew members.
• Lancashire Constabulary Air Support Unit Helicopter ’Oscar November 99,’ from the North West Air Operations Group (Police)
• Bolton Mountain Rescue Team ; Four Land Rover Mountain Rescue Ambulance vehicles, BM1 / 2 / 3 / 4. Twenty three Team Call Out list members on scene, plus a further three stood down responding.