A MULTI-AGENCY search took place in the mountains above the Bloody Bridge, near Newcastle, on Friday after concerns were raised about the safety of a walker who, it transpired, had sustained a head injury.
The alarm was raised shortly after 7am, with volunteers from the Mourne Mountain Rescue Team (MMRT), the Newcastle-based Search and Rescue Dog Association (Ireland North), police officers, a PSNI helicopter and Sky Watch NI, a charity which uses drones to assist with search operations, involved.
The man, whose family raised the alarm via the PSNI, had set out early to explore the area and relatives became concerned when they displayed what was later described as “out of character behaviour” during one of a series of telephone calls, leading to concerns he may have sustained a head injury, such as concussion.
With MMRT personnel on scene, and when the individual was not immediately located, they sought support from the other agencies.
As these resources were arriving, two other walkers, to whom a MMRT member had earlier been speaking with, spotted the person concerned and were able to offer initial assistance and direct team members to the location.
A MMRT spokesman explained that “it became clear that the walker had indeed sustained a head injury as a result of a fall.”
He added that the injured walker was assisted to a team vehicle, taken to the roadside and handed into the care of the NI Ambulance Service for onward transport to hospital.
Six team members were at the scene, with further volunteers on their way to help, when the man was located.
Thanking SARDA, Sky Watch NI, local police and their colleagues in air support, as well as the two walkers who helped on the mountainside, the team member also took the opportunity to send well wishes to the man as he recovers.
A SARDA IN representative also took the opportunity to wish the injured walker a full and speedy recovery whilst, in a social media post on the Police Newry, Mourne and Down site, an officer described Friday’s early-morning rescue as ‘a great example of how we work with other agencies.’
