Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec

Diary

Mon 7th Feb

It's Monday, so it must be First Aid. We're working our way through the ABCDE of the Primary survey: Airway, Breathing, Circulation, Disability, Extemities & Exposure. This is a systematic approach to evaluating a casualty quickly for life threatening injuries.

This week we're on D for disability. Steve, our First Aid Officer goes through assessing the consciousness of the casualty. We have a simple four point scale: Alert, Voice, Pain, Unconscious. We then move on to the more complex Glasgow Coma Scale (GCS) that is used in hospital (listen out next time you watch Casualty!). Steve goes on to talk about head and spinal injuries - signs, symptoms and treatement.

Finally, we move on to practical training on techniques for dealing with casualties with spinal injuries. In groups we go through log-rolling, the vacuum mattress that we use to stabilise a casualty and the Kendrick Extraction Device (KED), used to extract a casualty from a difficult location before using the vacuum mattress and stretcher.

It's tricky for Steve to run these sessions when team members with between 25 years and 6-9 months experience. Naturally, we retire to the pub for a swift half.

Sat 12th Feb

A quiet Saturday afternoon spent updating bits of the website (check out the new menu system - more tricky than it looks!). At 21.15, just put my feet up in front of the TV when we get a call out. It was almost bound to happen as a dozen team members are away on a hut weekend in the Lake District. I get my kit together and head off to the hut. There are three 15 year old boys reported missing between Edale and Crowden. Kinder, Edale, Buxton and Glossop are out. We're covering our usual patch around Kinder.

I'm allocated to drive Mobile 2, our new Landrover and start by dropping Kinder 1 off at the top of Monks Road to walk up Mill Hill to Ashop Head. By the time I get back to base, the other hill parties are deployed. Paul's driven Mobile 1 up to Edale Cross to drop off a couple of hill parties. The conditions are so bad that it takes him over an hour to return to the hut. I then stooge around the hut doing nothing in particular whilst the hill parties cover their search patterns. Eventually, drive Mobile 2 back to Monks Road with Steve to form a link to our hill parties on the plateau and to Glossop Control, on the Snake Summit, who a running the job.

Just before 1.00am we receive news that the missing group have been found in Edale. Our hill parties all make their way back to base, with me picking one group up at the Filter House. It's been horrendous up there: dark, sub-zero temperatures, gales and periodic white outs. In a bizzare way, I'm envious of those who've been out. Driving the landrover is important and we've agreed that everyone will spend at least one incident at base to understand better what goes on at the control end of the operation. I agree with all that, but still, it's not the same as being on the hill.

By the time everyone's down and the kit's packed away again, it's 3.00am and we all troop home.

Wed 16th Feb

Wednesdays are search and rescue training and tonight Geoff goes through casualty site management. We start off with the straightforward scenario of a single casualty, covering roles of first aider, first aid scribe, radio operator, site officer, evacuation officer, long and short navigators and marshal. Of course the situation on the hill is fluid and we need to be able to adapt to the particular circumstances that we find.

We then go through a multiple casualty site, where the first aider must find and treat the most severe injuries first. This scenario is extremely difficult when there is a single hill party on the scene and becomes progressively easier as more team members arrive. It's very unusual, but not hard to imagine a coach coming off the Hayfield to Chapel road and rolling down the hillside as a possible scenario for us.

And so to the pub...

Sun 20th Feb

The full day exercise this month is local knowledge (check out the quiz on this website!). Chrissie has organised the usual scheme of a set of clues identifying locations, with associated points, and a requirement to visit the locations to accrue as many points as possible.

Everyone's keen to know who they are teamed up with and especially whether it's with the super fit Bob. Last year Hamish drew the short straw and went on a huge tour of Kinder with Bob, arriving back at the hut in a crumpled heap. I'm amused to discover that I'm promoted to hill party leader for the first time ever. Colin and Chris are the unlucky members of my party. When we get the question sheet, it's clear that Chrissie wants us to go and explore Bleaklow, as nearly all of the locations are there. However, we decide that it's such a lovely day that we don't want to get into the car, so we walk 22km picking up the locations on Kinder. As expected, everyone else went to Bleaklow.

Steve's team won the event, but then they did take it very seriously: they were only allowed to eat in the car driving to the next parking point and not when out walking the route!

A couple of refreshments in the pub and home for tea.

Tues 22nd Feb

The snow has arrived and I'm half expecting a tea-time callout to rescue injured sledgers (it's happened before). Nothing, so I'm just settling down to watch the second half of Arsenal/Bayern Munich when my phone goes off. I fill my flask and make sure that I have my ice-axe and crampons before heading off to the hut. It all sounds rather familiar - a man has set off to walk from Edale to Crowden and failed to make it. Kinder, Glossop and dog-handlers are called out to search Kinder and Bleaklow.

I'm with Nigel's party and am allocated radio operator. This turns out to be a redundant job as we walk up William Clough, where there's no radio reception. My pack weighs me down tonight, as I've got full winter kit, ice-axe, crampons plus a heavy casualty tent, large search light, pack of flares and a radio. By around 22.30 we're approaching the last part of the clough and receive a broken message through the radio saying the casualty has been found. Nigel uses his mobile to ring base and confirm. We walk back down to Nigel's landrover and are back at base before 23.30. It's been a pleasant walk through the snow on a beautiful moonlit night, so we're not unhappy at being out.

Back at the hut, Geoff tells us that Glossop team found the casualty on Bleaklow above Torside and walked him off the hill, so a happy end to the evening.

In a break from tradition, we don't go to the pub after the callout - mainly because it's well after closing time by now, so home to bed.

Fri 25th Feb

Although it's the team meeting tonight, I pass on my apologies and have a great night out at Buxton Opera House seeing a couple of folk bands (sorry Mike B!). I'll wait for Peter to send out the minutes and check out what went on.

Sun 27th Feb

Just watching the England Ireland rugby match when my phone goes off. It's a callout with an RV at Crowden Youth Hostel, which is out of our area. I ring Chrissie to see if I'm needed for the landrover. It's all under control, so I make a flask, a few sandwiches and drive to Crowden. As I'm driving above the Woodhead reservoirs I see a search and rescue Sea-King helicopter flying to and fro. I assume that if this was a straightforward job, Glossop team and the helicopter would have got this sorted without needing to call us, so I'm expecting a long search of the moors above the Woodhead.

I arrrive and go up to the helicopter landing area. Apparently a man has fallen off Laddow rocks and is seriously injured. Glossop are already at the scene, as is the helicopter winchman. The helicopter takes off again, winches the casualty off and flies them straight to Huddersfield hospital. We were there to provide backup in case there was a problem with the helicopter and the casualty needed stretchering off. In the time honoured fashion, I return back to base and have a quick half in the pub before going home for a late tea.

I later learn that the casualty was very seriously injured and in intensive care for almost a week after the incident. At the time of writing, he was still under sedation and very ill but stable. It shows the value of being able to call on a rescue helicopter with winching capability.