Mountain Rescue Volunteers Are Heroes At Below Zero

[Daryl]

Mountain Rescue Volunteers Are Heroes At Below Zero Retrieved from http://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/newsfeed/2008/03/08/the-white-knights-86908-20343933/

Mountain Rescue Volunteers Are Heroes At Below Zero
Mar 8 2008 Exclusive by James Moncur

THE lone mountaineer was experienced, fit and had all the latest coldweather kit - but none of it was going to save him.

He'd been lying at the base of a 200ft cliff for more than three hours with a shattered pelvis and a snapped thigh bone sticking through his waterproof trousers. He'd run out of time.

The wind speed was gusting at over 100mph, the temperature was down to -30C and the driving snow had reduced visibility to a couple of feet.

But with tears freezing on his face as he thought of his wife and two young children, he spotted three faint glows heading his way through the blizzard.

Seconds later, the friendly grin and icicle-covered moustache of Jas Hepburn, one of the leading lights of the Cairngorm Mountain Rescue Team (CMRT) loomed over him.

And with a cheery "All right mate, taken a tumble have we?" the stricken man became the latest of hundreds who owe their lives to the team.

Jas, 45, the team's modest training officer, said: "We're not heroes or supermen, we're just providing a service for other like-minded people.

"Because we spend so much of our own spare time on the hills, it may be one of us in trouble one day.

"It doesn't matter how experienced or well-equipped you are, anyone can snap an ankle or twist a knee.

"It's good to know that there's a group of lads and lasses who'll find you and get you out."

And he added: "We don't just help climbers and hardcore mountaineers, we often rescue people who may come a cropper during a Sunday stroll in the middle of the summer.

"But, while we help everyone, it's the technical cliff and crag rescues that get the team's adrenaline going."

Jas knows all about scary rescues.

In 2006, he won a bravery award for saving a climber who was left dangling for seven hours above a 500ft drop. The man, in his 40s, fell on an ice climb called Kiwi Gulley in the Cairngorms.

He was leading a group up the cliff when he slipped and plunged 150ft past them before his safety rope caught him.

His two pals were trapped on a narrow ledge, holding his weight, in a blizzard and a temperature of -12C.

When the CMRT arrived, Jas was lowered to the stricken climber and, after assessing the hanging man's injuries, he climbed back to the top and organised a rope pulley system to recover the three men.

Speaking about the gong, which was presented to him by pop stars Girls Aloud, Jas said: "The award was for the whole team - without them, the rescue would have been impossible.

"I was just the daftie who was 'volunteered' to go down."

The 42 CMRT members are all volunteers and based at a converted church in Inverdruie, near Aviemore, which was bought in 2000 for £250,000.

It was paid for by public donations and massive fundraising efforts and costs about £7000 a year to run.

Deputy team leader Simon Steer said the move to the church has had a significant impact on the group's efficiency and performance.

He said: "It's great for storing kit, showering, sleeping, training - and the odd party. Our communication set-up is also very good and there are only a few blindspots on the hills. But none of it would have been possible without the support of the general public and the climbing community, who have given very generously."

The team also receive £26,000 in grants from the police and the Scottish government - but with overheads of £35,000 to £40,000 a year, the public support is vital.

Arguments for a professional and fully-paid mountain rescue unit are discounted by the team's bosses.

Team leader Willie Anderson said: "All decisions made by CMRT are taken in the best interests of the casualty without the thought of recompense or of the cost of the operation."

The average age is over 40 and the team is a mixed bag of carpenters, doctors, dentists and office workers.

There are two female members and one of them, mountain guide and local ranger Heather Morning, describes herself as "the gnarliest bird in the Cairngorms".

Heather has a search and rescue dog, Millie, trained to sniff out walkers and climbers buried by avalanches.

When she's not dragging people off mountains, the keen environmentalist says her mission in life is to persuade climbers to carry their poo home in biodegradeable bags.

She said: "It's absolutely disgusting and unhealthy and is no different than letting a dog do its business in the park. Our project is very simple and helps keep the hills clean and tidy."

But it's a huge challenge keeping climbers and walkers safe. The Cairngorm Plateau is about 20 miles long by 12 miles wide and contains more unbroken ground over 3500ft than anywhere else in Britain.

Five of Scotland's nine 4000ft summits lie within the range.

It also holds the winter playground that is Coire an t'Sneachda, which offers some of the best snow and ice climbing in Britian.

But it has recently been the scene of an unprecedented number of deaths.

Last year, five young men were killed in a little more than two months.

Jas Hepburn would never criticise a fellow climber or walker but the grizzled mountain man is more than happy to pass on his experience, gleaned from 35 years in the hills.

He said: "Climbers and walkers should know the basics of map reading, mountain survival and first aid.

"Before they set out, they should check the weather forecast and carry the appropriate kit and let someone know where they're going and when they're due back."

With a wry smile, he added: "If the weather turns nasty, they should swallow their pride and bail out."

With tears freezing on his face, he thought of his wife and two young children. Suddenly he spotted three faint glows..

For more information on the Cairngorm Mountain Rescue Team visit http://www.cmrt.org.uk.

To make a donation, the group's registered charity number is:SCO10737.