the wife just told me something in the news about a volunteer who suffered life changing injuries trying to rescue 2 people, we both don't know the exact circumstances but she gathered it was 2 people stuck up high up in the hills somewhere, she being a carer thought it heroic where as i thought it idiotic now i'm usually quite placid, but why on earth should a volunteer decide to help someone during lockdown who thinks it fine to go somewhere dangerous? leave it to the professionals i say. before you jump down my throat calling me callous, on friday a neighbour came out and offered to take a parcel in off me, they were just heading out themselves, on saturday i delivered a covid test kit to their house! and whilst filling my bag up today, an asda van driver was handing over bags of shopping to someone, 1 minute later i was posting a covid test kit to them too! i mean are some people so brain dead! also today i got told an old chap on my round who i chatted with regular died from covid at the weekend i just don't know the mentality of some folk these days but it's turning me into a "i don't give a ****" bloke
pissed me off when I heard it when it happened, both folk rescued were miles from home and nowhere near where they should have been and now some blokes life is ruined!
as i said, i've not read the news of it, but someone's life ruined due to probably someone's idiocy , but that's the normal now which is sad
The guy is a volunteer for the Mountain Rescue Service - I don't think you'd find anyone more 'professional' to carry out this task. News story link Just Giving link
The mountain rescue service do not judge. Most people they have to rescue shouldn't be where they are in the first place. In this instance, they were also breaking the law and had to pay the princely sum of £200 for their part in ruining this guy's life.
Yes, it's what they do. The two men in trouble were from Leicester and Liverpool. Both of them many miles from their homes camping overnight on a Cumbrian fell in February during a COVID lockdown. You really couldn't make it up. Edit, I've just donated on Chris Lewis's just giving. The bloke deserves to be looked after properly.
At the risk of 'jumping down your throat', mountain rescuers and most lifeguards are volunteers, that's what they volunteer to do. So if people need rescuing from mountains, then it's a volunteer who'll be doing it.
When they took the fella to hospital, first thing he asked was on the well being of the other casualty. Some people have no business being on mountains, virus or not..
By the way this is classic BBS. 'Somebody told me something, I don't know the background, I've not bothered to read any report to give me more details, but I'll spout off on the BBS'. Even managed the classic 'I can't have trait X because here are some examples of things I do'. Great work @korky, I genuinely admire what you've done there. Edited in: Apologies if this seems harsh, but I'm genuinely laughing at your post, I'm sure you're a top bloke, but the thread just made me laugh.
See also coastguards and St Johns ambulance. Also lowland rescue and other similar units around the country.
I knew about lifeguards from school trips when I was young but I only found out about search and rescue a couple of years ago. Our school during the last week of term has an 'enrichment week' where everyone (staff and students) signs up to an activity for the week. I signed up to 'Bark in the Park' as it was a week full of dog related activities, guide dog talks, visits to Dogs Trust, dog agility and flyball training, grooming, etc. and a talk with a search and rescue guy. During his talk and demonstrations on the moors, he told us that it was a volunteer role and he has to fully train up his own dog (takes around 600-1000 hours) and pay for it to gain certain qualifications before he's allowed to take it out on official search and rescues. Everyone was really surprised, especially that he even has to pay for the 'exams' his dog takes, of which I think there were maybe 3 different ones and then it has to be reassessed regularly.
It was fascinating listening to what he and his dog does and how they train. Unfortunately, it was freezing cold that day and even though the kids were being polite, they weren't really listening as it was raining so hard and we had to cut the talk short. I enjoyed it though!
Apologies for being pedantic, but I understand the 'coastguards' are fully employed for their service... the RNLI are nearly fully staffed by volunteers, and rely heavily on charitable donations to provide their crucial service.
Yes, I was referring to RNLI We went to Whitby a few times from school and always attended a talk there.
