Fifteen members of Buxton Mountain Rescue Team attended another snow related incident at 08:54 on Thursday 8th March. The volunteer team members were called to assist East Midlands Ambulance Service and Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service with a motorist who had sustained a leg injury in a road traffic collision. The incident occurred in icy conditions on the steep Sparrowpit to Chapel-en-le-Frith road near the village of Bagshaw.
The injured man was extricated by the fire service and strapped into an insulated vacuum mattress and casualty bag on a mountain rescue stretcher. Team members, wearing spikes on their boots, carried the …

The team were tasked to conduct a welfare check on a local resident due to concerns of family and friends not been able to contact her. The team turned out multiple vehicles and personnel due to the prevailing conditions and location of the farm. After getting as as possible by vehicle a small foot party accessed the farm and made contact with the lady, establishing she was perfectly fine, just having issues with mobile phone signal! The team passed on the message to her concerned relatives and friends and returned to base.

After heavy snow and drifting overnight a local outdoor centre was left without power and heating, as well as potentially being inaccessible by road for the coach due to return a visiting school group home. The team was tasked to head up to the centre to further assess the situation and access, to assist the centre and local emergency planners to out an appropriate plan in place. As the team arrived it was established the centre had got their back up generator up and running and all were safe and well. The local coach company showed excellent preparation and came …

On Return to Base from Incident the previous incident the team were diverted to assist 2 different stranded motorists. The first on Buxton Hill Road near Whaley bridge, was helped on their way after some significant snow clearance from the road by team members with Shovels, The second motorist was stranded near King Sterndale. Whilst the team were on their way to this incident Derbyshire Fire and Rescue kindly assisted by reaching the driver with their Unimog Off-road vehicle and taking her back into Buxton.

BMRT were tasked by the Police Emergency Planning to work with Edale MRT to conduct welfare checks on all persons on the A623 and where required return persons to a place of safety. The clearance was assisted by Derbyshire County Council snow ploughs.

BMRT were tasked by the Police Emergency Planning to work with Derby MRT to conduct welfare checks on all persons on the A515 between Buxton and Ashbourne and where required return persons to a place of safety. The clearance was assisted by Derbyshire County Council snow plough on the way out. Returning to Base was complicated by worsened weather and drifting snow, leaving the team to travel back by an alternative route assisting with clearing snow and stranded vehicles to create throughway for gritters and ploughs at Taddington crossroads on the A6.

In the recent situation with the snowy weather BMRT worked with Cheshire ALSAR to assist with the transfer of a patient from Buxton to Macclesfield General Hospital for dialysis treatment.

The team was called out along with Cheshire Search and Rescue to an injured walker on the side of Shutlingsloe.

The casualty had been enjoying a walk over Shutlingsloe when they slipped on the descent injuring their leg.

Team members were originally called to Trentabank car park, but when a more exact location of the casualty was obtained were re-routed to the rendezvous point of Shutlingsloe Farm.

First Aid treatment was undertaken by team members then the casualty was stretchered down to Shutlingsloe Farm for the onward journey to …

Watch this space for full report!

Buxton Mountain Rescue Team was saddened last weekend by the report of the death of Ken Drabble.  

Ken was the Head Warden for the Peak District National Park Planning Board at a time when the Peak District Mountain Rescue Organisation was in its early stages of development.  He soon became an Incident Controller after joining the Warden service and played a very active part in many rescues.   At that time, reports of daytime rescue incidents were diverted by the police to the National Park Information Centre at Edale where Ken …