Yew Crag, Eskdale

Re- enactment of a Rescue

Monday 1st August 2005 

The training scenario was to repeat the rescue and give other team members the chance to carry out the rescue in daylight and with less urgency.  Also to practice the technique of loading a suspect spinal casualty in a difficult and extremely dangerous location.

5/30:17/7/05 (2.19 a.m.) - Sunday

Call from Workington Police to rescue a 21 yr old male from the Kendal area who had fallen approximately 60 foot down Yew Crag, Hard Knott fell in Eskdale.  He had been camping with his friends just north of the Roman Fort on Hardknott Pass.  His fall was arrested by a tree and he was still in a difficult location..  He was treated for suspect back, chest and limb injuries and stretcher lowered to the base of the crag, around 100 foot below.  He  was moved to a safe pick up location and then air lifted by Navy SAR sea king helicopter to West Cumbria Hospital. After a period of assessment, treatment and stabilisation he was transferred a specialist hospital in the North East.  Fifteen team members, police, search dog and Navy Helicopter were involved on the incident.  The incident was closed at 9.00 a.m.

Photographs of the actual incident here

Practice Photographs

Belays fixed - two five point independent belays with a 600 static lowering rope split between the two belays i.e. double ropes on the stretcher lower to provided safety back up / redundancy in the system - Petzel Stops used for lowering.

Pipe optional but certainly kept the midges away

  

Bell stretcher being prepared for the vertical stretcher lower - the terrain is too rough for a horizontal lower and the use of the vacuum matress protects the casualty from further injury to the spine.  Horizontal lower would be better for the spine but subject the casualty and barrow boy to high risk from falling boulders [there were a few on the rescue and also on the exercise] 

Top of Yew Crag looking up the Eskdale valley

Two team members already down with the third on his way.

The casualty site is a broken tree approximately 20 feet below the abseiling team member

Another team member descends - casualty plus four team members in position.

Barrow boy plus stretcher on the way down to the tree

This is where it gets technically difficult. Casualty is upside down in the tree with a suspect spinal injury and other fractures.

Better shot of the site taken on zoom.

You can now get an appreciation of the difficult location and height above the safer ground at the bottom.  See team member at the bottom left of photo.  Also the fitting of the vacuum matress and evacuation of all the air is not easy when the stretcher is hanging in space.  The tree broke the fall of the casualty and saved his life. 

This shot gives an idea of the height of the crag.

Side shot of Yew Crag to give some idea of scale - the casualty location is about a third of the way down the crag.  

Evening sunset with Scafell Pike in the centre of the photo - Scafell in cloud to the left

Penny and Martin with the Irish sea in the background

Looking up Upper Eskdale in the evening sunshine 

Page created 4/8/05