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Diary of a newbie

– March 5, 2013Posted in: Front Page Article
After nigh on twelve months of training we had finally received notification of the fabled ‘hill assessment’. Be at Coppermines Youth hostel on Friday night. Bring stamina, strength of will, and all the knowledge you have gained. Be prepared for anything.
Nervous? you bet. Saturday morning arrived with crisp ground underfoot and excellent visibility. We might just survive. Handed radios, given grid references and told to plot them onto the map it became apparent that we had an exciting route ahead of us.
Radio check, confirmed, heart in mouth? definitely. We were off. A day in the snowy fells awaited. Checkpoint 1, radio in, on target – move on. Checkpoint 2 – the welcome site of full team members at the summit! This was a challenge but enjoyable too.
Onto 3. Snowy gullies awaited – ice axe out. After a steep pull up the ridge – a Cadbury’s cream egg! just the ticket. Now for the steep descent. Careful with the foot placements, don’t rush it. Phew, arrived at the lake and checkpoint 4. 5, 6 and 7 passed in a blur and in no time back at control.
DSCF1146Now the real fun began. Stretcher assembly, dizzy spell – sugar needed! CPR, casualty needs help. Don’t stop compressions till help arrives.
Now, how do you set up a rope system? I can hear Ron’s advice ringing in my ears – all those months ago. Sorted – Z rig pass.
Winching? Now you’re asking. Safely finished, vehicle safe.
Phew! now we can relax. or can we? Quick! emergency – casualty down in the gully with a broken leg. Time to put it all together and act as a unit. Planning, process, action – safety. Its far harder when you try to put it all together. No prizes for speed. But hopefully that will come with practice – I was proud of our team of newbies.
Done! Finally its time to put the feet up and enjoy a beer with new found friends and colleagues. We’re one step closer and the feeling of achievement is amazing.
It all starts to feel ‘real’ now.DSCF1116
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BAM Nuttall Limited Donate Over £1000 Worth of Equipment

– December 10, 2012Posted in: Front Page Article, Uncategorized

The Team has recently received over £1000 worth of equipment from BAM Nuttall Limited, who have recently been working in our area.  A couple of years ago, the BAM Nuttall Limited safety department sponsored the team and contributed towards a tripod that allows for safer access when carrying out rope work on a vertical cliff. This year the department has supported us again, this time using the buying power of BAM Nuttall at one suppliers to purchase a new Spencer Stretcher (‘Frank’ for short) and lifting bridles to replace our worn out ones (the photo shows Frank, the lifting bridles and tripod being used in training at Troy Quarry in Lancashire). The stretcher is multipurpose – it is lightweight, can be lifted on ropes or by a helicopter, can be sledged on grass or snow, carried by a team and splits in half to allow for storage and transportation. Needless to say, a stretcher is one of our vital pieces of equipment. BAM Nuttall Limited also threw a couple of pulse oximeters into the equipment donation, a vital piece of kit to monitor oxygen saturation levels in the blood, after one of the team’s broke during use. We cannot stress how grateful we are for these donations.

Team Leader, Pete Goble, said

‘The team relies on charitable donations in order to function on a day to day basis. The essential lifesaving equipment that BAM Nuttall have supplied will allow us to deliver an up to date and modern service that will ultimately feed back into the local, and wider, community that we cover. Without this generous donation, we would be using old equipment that is coming to the end of its’ serviceable life. BAM Nuttall have taken the pressure off the team to raise money for these items so we can concentrate on training to deliver the level of service expected of a professional emergency service, albeit that we are all volunteers.’

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