Heroes in the wilderness!
Meet the brave volunteers who put themselves at risk to save others...
Millions of people visit the Lake District every year but, for some, Cumbria’s stunning wilderness can prove dangerous. Fortunately, there’s an army of 400 volunteers on hand 24-hours a day, 365 days a year, keeping tourists and locals safe.
More4’s new four-part series, Lake District Rescue, follows the brave volunteers – ranging from teachers and electricians to farmers and even a nuclear engineer – who drop everything with a moment’s notice, to save scared, injured and lost people in difficult-to-access locations.
In this week’s opening episode the Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team negotiates tough terrain to treat a wild swimmer with a badly injured shoulder.
Above and beyond
After a two-mile trek to
Eskdale Pools, they find Royal Navy engineer Sean in excruciating pain. But because it’s a busy bank holiday, will there be an air ambulance available to help rescue him?
‘Calling in a helicopter is a big decision,’ explains team leader and heating engineer John. ‘Sean was really suffering but the concern with the injury is what we can’t see. It’s absolutely time-critical.’
Other rescues include an emergency at Bram Crag for the Keswick Team, where student Rowan has fallen and suffered a head injury. On the notorious Scafell Pike the Wasdale Team rescue a hiker with multiple broken bones. While at Greaves Ground, the Coniston Team, headed by Janice, save badly hurt dog, Sky!
‘Sky was losing a lot of blood and she was going into shock,’ says Janice. ‘If it was my dog that needed help, I know how bad I’d be feeling.’