Mountain rescue crews save 700 in record year

MORE than 700 people were helped to safety as mountain rescuers had their busiest ever year in 2021.

A record number were rescued by Scottish Mountain Rescue’s 25 teams as people took to the hills in the pandemic, figures published by the charity show.

The volunteers assisted 715 people – almost 100 more than the previous year, when 627 needed help.

Teams were called out to 660 incidents last year, compared to 497 in 2020. More than half – 52 per cent – of call-outs were mountaineering-related, which includes hill-walking, rock and winter climbing. Six incidents involved the rescue of dogs or sheep.

The most common contributory factor in mountaineering incidents was a slip or trip, with 119 such cases. Being lost accounted for 50 incidents, while 40 incidents involved navigation errors.

Injuries were suffered by 27 per cent of people rescued in mountaineering incidents and 56 per cent of them suffered a fracture.