in the news
Today at 3pm the Government will be testing the national Emergency Alerts system. Compatible phones across the UK will vibrate, make a loud siren-like sound, and display a message explaining that a test is taking place. Learn more: gov.uk/alerts
Emergency Alerts are used to warn and give important safety information about events that we are involved with such as severe flooding, wildfires, and storms.
Do let your friends and family know about the test, and if it happens for real please follow the advice.
No weekend lie-in for our team members today...
At 08:44 this morning the team was contacted by the Force Incident Manager at Lancashire Police, with the report of an injured male mountain biker on Winter Hill - the exact location being roughly half-way down the track between Winter Hill summit and the A675 at Belmont.
The team was promptly called out, and the first team member who lives nearby started making his way on foot up the hill by 09:05. Meanwhile, vehicles attended from Ladybridge Hall base and at 09:10 began to drive downhill from the summit, along the somewhat broken track, and vehicles attended from the Bolton North Fire Station base and those on board walked up the hill.
On arrival and after an assessment of the casualty, we determined that he may have sustained some potentially significant injuries and the North West Air Ambulance Charity was requested to attend.
The casualty was given pain relief, immobilised and after handover to the aircrew was carried a short distance to the NWAA aircraft from Barton, which departed to Salford Royal Infirmary. This incident was another excellent example of the great working relationship between ourselves and the NWAA crews.
We wish the casualty a full recovery and return to riding soon.
Early on Thursday morning we were asked to help our colleagues at Rossendale and Pendle MRT and North West Ambulance Service find a casualty who had called 999 after suffering a medical episode on Holcombe Moor. After a short search, the man was located and assessed by a medic from RPMRT and the NWAS ambulance crew. Members from both mountain rescue teams worked together to carry him off the moor to the ambulance at Lumb Carr Road. We want to thank the passing mountain biker who helped with the search and wish the man a speedy recovery.
You know how it is when you’re waiting for a bus and two come along at once? It is very rare for the team to have to handle independent, simultaneous, call-outs, but this is exactly what happened on Monday 25th August. At 16:45 our Team Leader, having been alerted to an incident in our patch by Bowland Pennine Mountain Rescue Team (BPMRT) , initiated a full team call-out, to rescue a casualty with a back injury on the upper slopes of Rivington Pike. Team members began their responses by either travelling to our bases, where our vehicles are stationed, or travelling direct to the incident site.
As our team member Steve was driving our vehicle Bolton Mobile 5 up George’s Lane heading for Rivington Pike, he was flagged down by an informant who was very surprised to see the team so soon. The informant said the casualty with the ankle injury was on nearby Burnt Edge. For a moment, this had Steve taken aback, until the message came through about the second call-out. Whilst this conversation was happening, North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust contacted us to request our assistance with a casualty at Burnt Edge, at a location just over 2km away from the Rivington Pike incident!
Our controller split the responding team members and vehicles into two groups in order to deal with the unfolding situation. The Rivington Pike casualty was quickly located south of the tower. Their injury necessitated that they be transported on a mountain rescue stretcher to our vehicle that was parked part way up the Pike track. A sledging technique was employed because the terrain was suitable for this method. Once on board our vehicle, the casualty was transported from the scene.
Meanwhile the second group of team members located the casualty on Burnt Edge and were able to drive along the track directly to her location. The lady had twisted her ankle and was unable to continue. After an initial assessment, the casualty was helped into one of the responding vehicles and taken a short distance to the road where an NWAS ambulance was waiting.
We wish both casualties a swift and thorough recovery. We would also like to thank the member of Bowland Pennine Mountain Rescue Team who was in the vicinity of the Rivington Pike incident when it happened, and joined in seamlessly with our team’s response.
We would like to thank the Dog Inn Belthorn for their kind donation of £310. The Dog Inn is a community run pub whose shareholders chose to donate their annual dividends to us in memory of Jim Fletcher. Jim was a big supporter of Bolton MRT, helping us to raise funds, earning his name on two of our vehicles!
The cheque was kindly given by Gordon, a member of the pub’s committee.
At 11:27 on Saturday the team was contacted by North West Ambulance Service NHS Trust who were requesting our assistance at Wilderswood, Horwich.
A 50 year old female was reported to have broken her ankle whilst mountain biking in the area.
11 team members attended and assisted the NWAS crew already on scene. The casualty was given pain relief and her leg was splinted before she was carried for 250m to the waiting ambulance.
We wish the casualty a full recovery and speedy return to riding!
Tonight!
This evening we host Mitch Hutchcraft at Northern Monkey Bar, Nelson Square, Bolton.
Earlier this year, Mitch completed the world’s longest triathlon. The former Royal Marine swam the English Channel; cycled from Calais to eastern India; then covered over 1250km on foot, culminating with summiting Everest.
Mitch will give an in-depth presentation of his story. Even better, anyone can attend.
Tickets are £10, or £5 for mountain rescue volunteers. All proceeds will go to Bolton Mountain Rescue Team. It will take place at Northern Monkey Bar, Nelson Square, Bolton. If you would like a ticket, you can direct message us via our social media channels or you can pay on the door.
Bolton MRT were called out at 16:36 on Sunday, at the behest of North West Ambulance Service. A casualty with a painful lower leg injury required assistance after going over on her ankle on moorland near Darwen.
Ten minutes after the call-out, the first team members arrived on scene. They immediately began assessing and treating the casualty whilst colleagues with further equipment were arriving at an RV point 500m away.
Once the casualty had been given pain relief, and her suspected broken leg was stabilised with a splint, she was packaged onto a mountain rescue stretcher and carried to the RV point. She was then transferred to an NWAS ambulance to be taken to hospital for further treatment.
We would like to wish the casualty a speedy recovery, and we hope you’re able to tackle your now delayed West Highland Way trip as soon as your leg is healed!
On Wednesday the team were honoured to host the High Sherriff of Greater Manchester, Martin Ainscough CBE DL. The High Sherriff toured our base at Ladybridge Hall and found out about the breadth of capabilities in the team, including our off-road and search control vehicles, flood and swift water rescue equipment, and rope rescue capability. The High Sherriff also met members of our Support Team, who raise valuable funds and attend events on our behalf.
Afterwards, the High Sherriff observed a mass-casualty training exercise undertaken by the team, before speaking to volunteers and presenting certificates to team members who had recently achieved the Remote Rescue Medical Technician and Outdoor First Aid qualifications.
A round-up of recent incidents:
On Saturday 5th July, North West Ambulance Service requested our assistance with a young man who had fallen a significant distance out of a tree in woods close to Smithills Farm, with concerns about possible spinal, pelvic and lower leg injuries. The casualty was immobilised and carefully extricated before being carried to the waiting ambulance on our mountain rescue stretcher.
Just before 2pm on Friday 11th July, the team was contacted by Greater Manchester Police for help in searching for a high risk missing person in the Elton area of Bury. We were tasked with searching areas of woodland around the Kirklees Trail. We concluded searching our assigned areas at approximately 8pm. Later that evening, we received the good news that the missing person had been found safe and well.
Two days later, while attending Worsley Summer Fair on Sunday 13th July, two of our Remote Rescue Medical Technicians supported by other team members, were called upon to provide first aid to a member of the public who had collapsed. We're pleased to report that following a thorough assessment by North West Ambulance crew, the patient involved was discharged on scene.
A busy time for the team!
It’s less than two weeks until we host Mitch Hutchcraft at Northern Monkey Bar, Nelson Square, Bolton.
Earlier this year, Mitch completed the world’s longest triathlon. The former Royal Marine swam the English Channel; cycled from Calais to eastern India; then covered over 1250km on foot, culminating with summiting Everest.
On Wednesday 23rd July, we have arranged for Mitch to give an in-depth presentation of his story. Even better, anyone can attend. Tickets are £10 on the door, or £5 for mountain rescue members. It will take place at Northern Monkey Bar, Nelson Square, Bolton. If you would like to put your name down for a ticket, please direct message us via our social media channels.
Today, we’re spending this splendid Sunday at Worsley Summer Fair.
We have kit demonstrations and a CPR challenge, and you can talk to our attending members about the work we do.
Remember the SPF and to stay hydrated whatever you’re up to today!
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When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted. Last Wednesday evening, four Bolton MRT members joined colleagues from Rossendale & Pendle MRT, Holcombe Harriers, and family and friends of the late Andy Haines at the unveiling of an automated external defibrillator (defib) at Peel Tower on Holcombe Moor.
Bolton MRT were called to an incident on Holcombe Moor in November 2024. Andy had suffered a cardiac arrest and - despite the best efforts of members from both mountain rescue teams, other medical professionals, and his running colleagues - he sadly died. In his memory, local charity Restart the Heart has raised the funds to supply and install the defibrillator, which is accessible 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
In an emergency, the nearest defibrillator can be found by using the search function at www.defibfinder.uk
On Saturday, three of Bolton MRT’s Remote Rescue Medical Technicians travelled to Catterick, North Yorkshire, to take part in a trauma study day. This event, organised by Swaledale Mountain Rescue Team, saw members from 12 teams take part in a wide range of scenarios based on real incidents the various teams had been called to. It was great to learn from other teams and also to pass on some of our own knowledge, and to get hands on with the panoply of kit that other teams use.
We send our thanks to the organisers and all those who took part for making it a cracking day!
P.S. Many happy returns to Bolton MRT member Jane.
The team is at Armed Forces Day at Victoria Square in Bolton today. Why not come down and meet us to learn about the work that we do? You can try your hand at some of our games. Can you throw the line into a bucket, or can you break the record for the longest amount of time you can do CPR on our simulator? Will you be top of the league and claim victory?
Tomorrow the team will be fundraising at Armed Forces Day at Victoria Square in Bolton. Armed Forces Day is a national event that celebrates and commemorates our armed forces. The team is honoured to be invited to join in such a special day. Join us from 10:30 am on Saturday to meet the team and learn more about the work we do. We will also have one of our team vehicles there, so you can see for yourselves the amount of kit that we carry!
ANNOUNCEMENT
Mitch Hutchraft and the world’s longest triathlon.
You may have seen, in the news recently, that a former Royal Marine has completed a truly remarkable feat of endurance. He swam the English Channel; cycled from Calais to eastern India; then covered over 1250km on foot, culminating with summiting Everest.
On Wednesday 23rd July, we have arranged for Mitch to give an in-depth presentation of his story. Even better, anyone can attend. Tickets are £10 on the door, or £5 for mountain rescue members. It will take place at Northern Monkey Bar, Nelson Square, Bolton.
All at Bolton MRT would like to pass on their congratulations to those in the wider mountain rescue community who have received awards in the King’s Birthday Honours List. In particular, Iain and Becky Ashcroft of North East Wales Search and Rescue. Combined, they have over 60 years experience within mountain rescue. Iain also organises and runs the Mountain Rescue England and Wales Party Leaders’ Course, which helps equip MR team members with skills they need to lead a search team. Bolton MRT members have worked with Iain and Becky numerous times over the years on this course, so we’ve seen their commitment and dedication to MR and the communities they work in first-hand.
Well done to all, and thank you for your continued service.
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When this happens, it's usually because the owner only shared it with a small group of people, changed who can see it or it's been deleted. On Sunday morning the team provided safety cover for the Edgworth 10k race. Organised by We Run Edgworth, the race follows a scenic route around both the Wayoh and Turton and Entwistle reservoirs. Nearly 200 competitors were involved and, despite the heavy rain and slippy conditions, we only had one casualty to treat for minor head and face injuries after he took a tumble. We wish the runner all the best for a speedy recovery.
In the afternoon, three team members stayed in Edgworth to attend the Edgworth Fun Day organised by the Barlow Edgworth and Scallywags Preschool. Vacuum splints were put on willing volunteers and CPR was practised on our dummy. The team would like to thank all those people that made donations towards the £60,000 it costs to fund our day-to-day running costs each year.
Last Thursday, Bolton MRT provided standby rescue cover for the Leo Pollard Memorial Race.
This annual event, organised by Lostock Athletics Club, sees over 100 runners take on a tough 10km moorland course. Setting off from Rivington, the competitors ascend to Rivington Pike, traverse the tops to Winter Hill summit, then make their way back over Rivington Moor, before finally descending back to the finish line in the village.
Well done to all the competitors, and to the marshals and organisers who contribute to this event.
This afternoon, the team are at Edgworth Fun Day at the Barlow. Why not come down meet the team, and learn about the work that we do?
You're very welcome. Thanks for listening well and asking some great questions!
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