Civilian walkers saved my life, says soldier

ANOTHER soldier on the SAS training march told the inquest how he was rescued by civilian walkers who had to activate his emergency beacon.

The man, who was only referred to as Soldier 1X, lost consciousness after creating a shelter to protect himself from the burning heat.

The soldier described how he was ‘physically, mentally exhausted’ and was also out of water.

‘It was probably the last ascent of the day,’ he said. ‘I felt like I was going to collapse there and then.’ He described how two civilian walkers came across him as he came around and rushed to get him water.

‘The civilian walkers were moving west,’ he said.

‘There was a male and female walking together. I had requested some assistance, told them I was out of water.

‘I told him where it was (emergency button) and how to activate it, which he did. I was exhausted.’

He added that he then tried to eat food to boost his energy levels – including drenching his sandwich in water to try to absorb as much as possible.

‘I just poured a full litre of water over the cheese and pickle roll so I could swallow it easier,’ he said.

‘I stripped down to just my shirt to try and cool myself down and kept taking on water and kept the headrest on and damp to reduce the effect of the sun.’

After the tragic march, reservists were withdrawn from the SAS selection course after ‘an order from fairly high above’.