The Dublin & Wicklow Mountain Rescue Team (DWMRT) and neighbouring Glen of Imaal MRT (GOIMRT) were called into action for the second time this week in the vicinity of Lugnaquilla Mountain, County Wicklow. The week began with a high profile search operation on Monday and Tuesday for two ‘benighted’ mountaineers, with another callout today when rescuers were tasked with assisting a walker who was suffering due to the cold conditions.
The casualty had accidentally submersed his foot in cold water and some 90 minutes later complained of a worrying loss of sensation in his foot. The casualty was accompanied at the time by his two walking companions - All three are experienced hillwalkers. The men wore high visibility vests to assist rescuers in identifying them on the hillside and attented to their injured colleague while waiting for the teams to arrive on scene.
Members of the two rescue teams who were operating in the vicinity at this time responded quickly to the mans location, where all three men reported they were feeling the cold at this stage. Due to our concerns about the possible onset of hypothermia The Irish Coastguard Sikorsky S-61 was scrambled to help remove the injured man and his colleagues from the hillside as quickly as possible.
Incident Stats
Number: 10-2009
Tasking Agency: Gardai
Callout Officer: G. Ward
Incident Date: 14-02-2009
Incident Time: 14:20hrs
Incident Type: Rescue
Incident Site Grid Ref: T 032 917
Mobile Phone Used to Alert Emergency Services: Yes
