2008

This afternoon the team was contacted by NWAS (Lancashire) Emergency Control to go to the aid of a female walker who had injured her lower leg whilst walking the Witton Weavers Way, on Turton Moor.

The North West Air Ambulance, Helimed 08 was also tasked to this incident and in spite of relatively poor visibility was able to evacuate the casualty from the hill, at which point the team was stood down whilst responding in our vehicles from Bolton Fire Station and Ladybridge Hall.

In total 20 Bolton MRT team members responded to this incident, with 2 team members stood down after arriving at the designated rendezvous point.

At 11.45hrs late this morning our Team Leader Garry Rhodes was contacted directly by NWAS (Manchester) Emergency Control Centre for the teams assistance in evacuating an injured walker in the Greenmount area of Bury.

Our Team Leader was requested to liaise directly via mobilephone with an NWAS Rapid Response Vehicle Paramedic on scene already caring for the 60 years old woman, who had a suspected right ankle fracture following a slip on the icy / compacted snow path she had been walking along.

With more information obtained on this incident and the exact location, our Team Leader directly mobilised our Deputy Leader Geoff Seddon to this incident, along with our Ladybridge Hall base / HQ based BM1 Landrover Mountain Rescue Ambulance.

At 11.58hrs a full team pager call out was activated, along with our Team Leader liaising with the Team Leader of Rossendale and Pendle MRT, who happens to live near to this incident location for him to also respond plus any RPMRT members immediately available in the vicinity of this incident.
Our first team member arrived at the incident RVP off Shepherd Street / Brandlesholme Road, Greenmount, at 12.05hrs, followed by RPMRT members Andy Simpson (Team Leader) and Steve Hatton.

By this time an NWAS Emergency Ambulance was also on scene, with one of the NWAS crew members coincidentally being a member of RPMRT!

With the arrival of our BM1 vehicle, the injured woman was placed onto a Bell Mountain Rescue stretcher and then evacuated by a mixed Bolton MRT, Rossendale and Pendle MRT and NWAS party, part sledging and part carrying the stretcher to our BM1 vehicle, which then transported the injured woman to the NWAS Emergency Ambulance at the roadhead RVP just after 13.00hrs.

In total 4x Bolton MRT were involved on scene, 1x further member was stood down responding, with our Team Leader co ordinating events from his workplace. Rossendale and Pendle MRT had two members involved alongside the three NWAS Emergency ambulance straff on scene. (one of whom was also a member of RPMRT)
An excellent joint team work approach by three services all well versed and practised at working together. (Webmaster, the amazing thing is that this incident went as smoothly as it did given that out of the small number of MRT members involved two were Team Leaders and one was a Deputy Team Leader, only joking Garry!)