Rescued hikers were too stoned to walk
HIKERS who took so much cannabis they were unable to walk had to be airlifted from England’s highest mountain, as police said volunteers’ lives were put at risk to save them.
The group of four were found “incapable of walking” at the end of a threehour mountain rescue operation on Scafell Pike, in the Lake District, on Saturday afternoon.
Mountain rescue, air support and ambulance crews had to be dispatched to the 3,209ft (978m) peak when the walkers got into trouble, with Cumbria Police lamenting “words fail us”.
Emergency services were scrambled after police received a call from the “incapacitated” group who said they were stuck on the mountain after taking the Class B drug.
“Persons rescued after becoming incapable of walking due to cannabis use. volunteers putting themselves at risk to prevent harm,” Cumbria police posted on social media.
The group was brought down to safety by the Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team, a group of volunteers that support the emergency services in the area, at 9.45pm.
Cumbria Police warned walkers about the dangers of taking alcohol or any other impairing substances on to a mountain.
“We received a 999 emergency call at approximately 6.30pm,” a Cumbria Police spokesperson said.
“Unfortunately a group of four people who were on Scafell Pike had run into difficulty.”
Supt Justin Bibby, warned walkers to “never underestimate the mountain and always prepare before setting out”. He said: “Mountain safety is your responsibility. Taking alcohol or any other substance that could impair your judgment significantly increases your risk of getting into trouble. It has no place on a mountain.”
The Lake District Search And Mountain Rescue Association said such callouts were “becoming a joke”.
Social media users criticised the “idiotic” group, with one posting: “There should be a mandatory financial charge for this sort of thing.”