Two walkers were found shivering in cold and wet conditions
Two walkers were found shivering in cold and wet conditions by rescue teams(Image: Oldham Mountain Rescue Team)
Mountain Rescue Teams were scrambled to an emergency incident at Dovestones following reports of an injured walker. Crews were called to the incident on the evening of December 21.
Specialist rescue teams were called to two walkers in the popular area, near Saddleworth Moor, after one of the party fell and suffered a knee injury. They were located near Birchen Clough shortly after.
On arrival, the Oldham Mountain Rescue Team said the walkers were found ‘very cold after waiting in the wet, cold conditions’ near a steep and dangerous path. They were later rescued and led to safety with the use of an anchored rope and a stretcher. The rescue mission took around four hours.
In an update shared on social media, Oldham Mountain Rescue wrote: “On Sunday evening our team was called out to assist two walkers in the Dovestones area after one had fallen and sustained a knee injury, leaving them unable to continue.
“Initially the exact location was unclear, but once the walkers were able to describe where they had been, a team was deployed to search up Birchen Clough. Thankfully, they were soon located.
“On arrival it was clear that both walkers were very cold after waiting in the wet, cold conditions. The uninjured walker was supported by team members as they carefully made their way down the steep, rocky path and across the river to our control vehicle to warm up.
“The injured walker was placed in a warm blanket and secured onto a stretcher for a challenging carry down. Due to the difficult terrain, this involved frequent use of two lines of mountain rescue volunteers to safely pass the stretcher over rocky sections along with an anchored safety rope as a back up.
“The casualty was then transported down a track to a waiting ambulance for further assessment. Thank you to everyone involved for their teamwork and determination in tough conditions.”