Lake District accident

Members of the Patterdale rescue team were on BBC breakfast news this morning. Absolutely devastated by the injuries their very experienced team member has suffered. Severe spinal injuries .
Sounds as if he won't walk again
It's unbelievable that a 200 pound fine is all the two people who travelled from Liverpool
and Leicester get.They should be named and shamed.

Glad to hear that the story is still in the public eye. But that doesn't help the poor victim of the accident.
We need more education for children and youths on the dangers invoved in adventure.
But how do you educate for consideration of others who are kind enough to volunteer to save us?

An online appeal has raised upwards of £100K for him, and after the publicity today on regional and national news broadcasts, there will likely be more to come.

I've just donated, I was so sorry to hear about this, poor man. Pandemic or not, the team are there to help anyone at any time, they are completely dedicated.

If anyone wants to donate the link is:

www.justgiving.com/campaign/Chris-Lewis-Support-Fund-LDSAMRA-Patterdale-MRT?experiments=b2c_040_frp_trust_proposition_bar&successType=StaticDonateButtonClick&utm_medium=socpledgemobile&utm_content=Chris-Lewis-Support-Fund-LDSAMRA-Patterdale-MRT%3Fexperiments%3Db2c_040_frp_trust_proposition_bar&utm_campaign=post-pledge-mobile&utm_term=XQnXAQNZ6&fbclid=IwAR0crPrjT-XlMnGKeYPVsFZR9U62eXNPDYGHjt5kD_Fb4slEUP3LZFXI0LA

I agree with the idea of insurance but not sure how it could be implemented. I think there should be some sort of fund which provides help for volunteers injured in the line of duty.

Thanks for that link, Shandy

They should be presented with a fat bill for rescue costs on an hourly rate for the time it took plus medical costs for the rescuer who was hurt.

sodapop

I agree with the idea of insurance but not sure how it could be implemented. I think there should be some sort of fund which provides help for volunteers injured in the line of duty.

I would have thought that the whole group of volunteers were insured by the county or similar and maybe the injured man also has a private insurance. Of course money can never replace what is being faced by the volunteer.

I think I may be alone in feeling sorry for the two men being rescued. Of course they shouldn't have been in the Lake District at the time. However they must be devastated by the consequences of their actions and they have to live with that. That is not to say I don't also have immense sympathy for the poor rescuer with life changing injuries.

I don’t understand mumofmadbays these are grown men who thought it was clever to defy guidelines. £200 is probably less than what they spend on filling their car for a month. Their names are not mentioned so they are not even shamed. Live for them has not been touched.

What makes you believe the two men being rescued ‘must be devastated by the consequences of their actions” madmum?
The fact they chose to drive long distances in two cars, from different parts of the country, during lockdown sets the scene. To then climb to camp in conditions that anyone would realise to be high risk confirms their total lack of regard for anyone but themselves.
Every stage of this selfish behaviour could have resulted in emergency services being called. These are adult men, they should not have behaved as they did. If they can rationalise their jolly outing I’ll be surprised if they aren’t able to rationalise their responsibility

I was thinking more about the walkers having insurance mokryna so the volunteers could claim from that if injured. If the county insures the group then it's another expense for the taxpayer. As I said thought I'm not sure how it could be implemented.
I have no sympathy for the walkers concerned as I would have no sympathy for drivers causing injury whilst using their phones at the wheel.

I suppose we can all make mistakes, bad decisions, that have consequences for others as well as ourselves and that we regret for the rest of our lives. For that reason I agree with mumofmadboys and believe the men involved probably do regret their actions. Their friends, families, and neighbours will all know who they are and they will be shamed within their own communities. We may say they deserve it but that won’t help the volunteer who I’m sure had willingly taken these risks because of his love of the mountains and of his fellow human beings. I wish him a good recovery and as good an outcome as possible.

mokryna

Disgusting those thoughtless people have been fined only £200 each! The volunteer has life changing injuries. They should be made to pay a pension for the rest of his life.

My thought exactly! Disgusting behaviour by these thoughtless idiots.

I do have an insurance that covers this sort of thing, I don’t know if others have it in addition with the car and house. Every parent at the beginning of the school year has to have this accident cover for their children. It’s a French thing. Please don’t start screaming at me about the extra expense.

I have no sympathy whatsoever for these two men who deliberately broke lockdown rules. The man with chest pains 'had gone on the trip in order to feel better' because he suffered from anxiety , PTSD and depression. Apparently 'his actions will live with him forever', just like the rescuer whose life he has ruined.'

Until rule breakers are punished severely, with huge fines and enforced house arrest, tagged, nothing will stop these self-entitled 'the rules don't apply to me' egotists or prevent others from following their actions.

momb, you are not alone in having some sympathy for the offenders. I do too. Of course, not a patch on that for the rescuer but, nonetheless some. No excuse but they may have been seasoned climbers. I think I'm right in saying chest pains was the reason for the call out? Who could ever predict that even in non Covid times? These two men will have this awfulness to live with for the rest of their lives. Covid apart, I'm sure the injured rescuer would not have wished these men to curtail their outdoor pursuits at any time. It just went very badly wrong on this occasion.

So totally agree with the comments on this thread. One of the individuals involved has had the gall to say ..he needed to get out because he has mental health problems but now realises he could have dealt with them in a different way... We are all struggling with lock down but don't take to the hills to sort it out. I agree these two should be made to pay the injured rescuer a pension for life.

I’m with eazy on this. I get fed up of the argument that the person responsible for harming another ‘has to live with the consequences of their action’. ( People say this about the killer of Harry Dunn.) These climbers were selfish entitled people and yes I hope they feel guilt for the rest of their lives especially when engaging in activities their brave rescuer will never experience again.

The people flouting lockdown in these circumstances should be charged with endangering life. A paltry £200 fine is nothing for what they have caused and they should be made to take responsibility for their actions. Mountain Rescue are all local people who volunteer for this service and are very highly regarded by all. To be so irresponsible and to have caused this accident by their illegal actions is not acceptable in any way.

I really, really cannot understand how anyone can say they feel sorry for the two grown men who behaved in such an idiotic, irresponsible way. It is the middle of winter, subzero temperatures and they decide it is a good idea during lockdown to travel long distances (not allowed) to go up a mountain because they want to. Harris27 you have made incorrect comments as it is obvious you have misunderstood what happened. The volunteer with the rescue team has sustained life changing injuries while undertaking to rescue the men. If I sound angry it is because I am, here in the Northwest we have probably had more news coverage about this. A £200 fine is totally inadequate for this sort of behaviour.

I agree, to a point, with Sodapop and Mokryna about personal insurance in sporting activities.
Husband had a skiing accident in France and took out insurance before he started. So he was covered for the rescue expenses.
But this also encourages recklessness in a way as it removes personal responsibility.

Do we know if the walkers had insurance?
They dont sound responsible enough for that!

As always as well Fennel it would be the people with thought and consideration who took out insurance. The usual suspects would not bother.

True sodapop.
I wonder if there are any statistics to show whether calls to rescue services have increased since ownership of mobile phones has become the norm.