At 13.45 hrs on Saturday 16th July Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team was called by Cumbria Police to assist an elderly lady who had slipped whilst traversing Striding Edge and taken a fall. The Leader on call initiated the response by the team and due to her injuries, the location and the hot weather requested a Coastguard SAR helicopter to assist.

Team members ascended on foot to Striding Edge whilst the helicopter from Prestwick arrived on scene. The lady was treated at the scene for shoulder and arm injuries including a fractured wrist. She was winched into the helicopter and flown to Hospital for further treatment. The team would like to thank the coastguard for their assistance, this saved a long and very hot evacuation as the weather was extremely hot.

The rescue took just over 3 hours and involved 12 team members.

At 13:20 on Monday 4th July 2022, Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team received a call from the Cumbria Police to assist a 67 year old woman from Reading who had slipped whilst out walking near Aira Force with her husband. 12 team members responded to the callout.

The woman’s injured ankle was assessed and splinted and she was stretchered back to her car, from where her husband drove her to Penrith Minor Injuries Unit. The callout lasted about 2 hours.

On Sunday 12th June at 16.20hrs whilst members of the Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team were out on another rescue on Striding Edge the team was made aware, by Cumbria Police, of a woman who had fallen from a path and ended up in the water down a steep ravine in Aira Force.

Five team members who were able to respond to this incident attended with one team Landrover with rescue equipment. A request was made to Penrith Mountain Rescue to assist and they responded with 12 team members. The flady was extricated from the river using a rope system and hauled onto the river bank where she was treated as she was cold and wet.

Fortunately, she had not suffered any injuries, despite a fall of considerable distance into the river. The rescue lasted 2 hours, after which team members returned to Patterdale Base to sort all the wet kit from both jobs, making it a long afternoon. Thanks to Penrith Mountain Rescue for their attendance in this rescue.

On Sunday 12th June at 12.50hrs Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team was called by Cumbria Police to a report of a man in his fifties who had fallen on Striding Edge, sustaining head and leg injuries. The Duty Leader attempted to make contact with the casualty’s wife who was the informant but due to lack of phone signal this was not possible.

Due to the location and reported injuries a Coastguard Helicopter with winching capabilities was requested to assist in the rescue. On arrival the helicopter attempted to winch a paramedic to the scene but was unable to due to the wind conditions. Team members who had ascended on foot from Greenside were then flown from Red Tarn outlet onto Helvellyn Summit.

They were then able to make their way quickly on foot down onto Striding Edge. Once at the casualty site it was established he had fallen around 5 metres and was quickly assessed and treated for his injuries, he was then placed into a casualty bag and vacuum mattress, and then placed onto the stretcher. Team members then carried the stretcher up onto the ridge and then lowered him down from Striding Edge around 150 metres involving a technical rope system.

The weather was heavy rain and low cloud by this time but, fortunately, once they had descended into the back of Red Tarn at the base of Helvellyn, the coastguard helicopter, with some excellent flying, managed to winch the casualty on board and he was transported to hospital at Carlisle for further treatment. The rescue was attended by 15 team members taking around 4.5 hours in total.

The Team’s 2022 incident attendance register records this callout as “Wrist injury at base”. It was recorded as a limited callout. No further public press-release wording survives in the archive.