Man’s lucky escape after fall on Ben Vorlich
A hillwalker had a miraculous escape after tumbling hundreds of feet down a mountainside near Lochearnhead and escaping with only minor bruising.
The walker, a French man in his early 20s who had travelled from Aberdeen, fell on the summit of Ben Vorlich around 6pm Sunday and slid 200 metres down the mountain – which is around 900 metres in height.
Having escaped without serious injury, the man lost his footing for a second time, plunging further down the peak.
He had been out walking with a friend at the time and disappeared out of sight after falling.
The man’s friend and another walker began to frantically search for him but were unsuccessful and returned to the car park had called for help.
Police and 25 volunteers from Killin Mountain Rescue Team took part in the operation and used infrared cameras to locate the man as he was making his way down.
He made contact with search parties just below the half way point of the mountain 45 minutes later.
Bill Rose, from Killin MRT, said:“The visibility was very poor.
“We have quite a lot of members within the Lochearnhead area with a lot of local knowledge so we were able to mobilise our team pretty quickly and it didn’t take them long to find him.
“He was really lucky that he wasn’t injured, apart from a few bruises. Luckily for him he just slid down the snow.
“He didn’t have crampons with him and he didn’t have the right type of boots if you are going out on the hills.
“The weather wasn’t very good and if he had fell and hurt himself then the snow would have come down pretty quickly and covered him and we may not have found him.
“I would urge anyone who is going out on the hills to make sure that they are fully prepared and have the right footwear for the conditions.”
Tayside Mountain Rescue Team and the Search and Rescue aircraft from Prestwick, Ayrshire, were also mobilised to assist in the search before being stood down whilst on route.
Police Scotland echoed the warning of Killin MRT and have urged hill goers to consider their safety and ensure that they are well prepared by making sure they have warm, waterproof clothing; a hat and gloves; a torch; a suitable map of the area and a compass; a whistle; a bivvy bag or bothy shelter; food and a hot drink; inform someone where you are going; check the weather and avalanche forecasts before setting off.
The latest mountain rescue came just days after the body of 51–year old Alloa woman, Alison Fox, was discovered at Dumyat Farm, near Menstrie, after getting lost in heavy snow on Thursday (March 1). The body of Ms Fox was found the following day.