Torridon Mountain Rescue Team

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Reflections from a New Recruit, February 2014

02.14.2014 by Torridon MRT // Leave a Comment

New recruit

To be truthful, writing this, I’ve encountered again the same ‘Cold Chill’, now, as when I attended my first Sunday all day training session, nearly one year ago. To my emotional rescue, then, was the comfort that there was at least another six, ‘Fresh Meat’ candidates brave enough to enlist & run the Torridon Mountain Rescue training gauntlet.

The day, the same as all training days since was extremely well organised & structured by all team members involved & for many of us ‘Newbies’, probably shattered or re-in forced any preconceptions that we had. For me, I had some years of hill walking experience & a couple of years involved with mountaineering, so naively & arrogantly, I thought that I would have something to bring to the team!

To elaborate, in the much larger world of the MRT, attention to detail is essential. My whole skill set is now more comprehensive & my techniques continually being honed to a higher level. I have found the whole experience so far, extremely ‘humbling’. The dedication & professionalism of the team members shines through the patience of teaching & the extensive conglomerate of skills of which have to be learned. The sense of team spirit & achievement is infectious & has installed in me a keen motivation to re-attend training sessions and to better myself in something that I really enjoy.

As a recent member to the call-out list, you become immediately aware of your responsibility. All that training isn’t for nothing! The phone can ring at any time! Your new kit should always be maintained & ready for use. Keep your phone on you at all times & charged & hopefully you will arrive on time & at the correct rendezvous point of your call–out.

As a ‘ Fresh Meat, Newbie’ I also have the aid of my own personal Mentor. “Can you make a silk purse out of a Pigs Ear ? “, I might ask (ha!ha!), I’m sure he’ll have an answer for that in his black book!

The TMRT is jam packed full of dedicated professional individuals who give their time for free & I am proud to be part of it.

Rod Winton

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St John Scotland

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Torridon Mountain Rescue Team is in Torridon.

12 hours ago

Torridon Mountain Rescue Team
DOUBLE CALLOUT: NIGHT TIME ON BEINN EIGHEIn the early hours of Saturday morning, the team was alerted to a walker stuck in technical terrain around the classic Black Carls ridge scramble on Beinn Eighe.A small team was whisked onto the mountain by Maritime and Coastguard Agency helicopter Rescue 151, but with relatively low cloud, there was still a fair romp up onto the ridge with heavy packs and technical rescue gear. After a careful escort along the ridge with rope systems in place, the walker was successfully extracted and the team were back at base by 7am. A long night!As the team were travelling back to base, they were alerted to a runner attempting the daunted The Martin Moran Foundation Martin Moran Round. The runner had fallen on the descent from Maol Chean-dearg, and thought they had broken their hand. Well equipped and experienced, they walked themselves out over 3hrs almost to the roadside, where the team brought them to base for pain relief and immobilisation. An x-ray later revealed a nasty break to 2 bones in the hand.As ever a big thank you to the crew of Rescue 151 for their support on this rescue.Our team is made up of volunteers who are on call 24/7, 365 days a year to help those in need in the mountains. We are almost entirely funded by public donations. Please consider donating at the link in our bio.Scottish Mountain Rescue#mountainrescue #Torridon #technicalrescue #nc500 ... See MoreSee Less

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Torridon Mountain Rescue Team is in Scotland.

3 weeks ago

Torridon Mountain Rescue Team
CALLOUT WHILE TRAININGIt was a normal August monthly training session in Shieldaig this Sunday, where we were refreshing our technical rope rescue skills at the local crag.That was until early afternoon, when the call came in for a crashed paraglider in the hills above Strathcarron. With limited information, but the potential for serious injuries, we quickly derigged and hit the road. Our team arrived and were lifted onto the hill by Coastguard helicopter R151, where they worked alongside the local ambulance paramedics and Winch Paramedic to provide initial care to the casualty. Because of the severity of the injuries, the air ambulance was requested, and Helimed 2 was quickly on scene with a Critical Care team.After packaging and making the casualty as comfortable as possible, the team aided with transferring between helicopters for onward travel to hospital in Helimed 5. We wish the casualty all the best with their recovery.Thank you to all the agencies involved in this response, including @maritimecoastguard @scotambserviceOur team is made up entirely of volunteers who are on call 24/7, 355 days a year. We rely on public donations to enable our work. Please consider donating at the link in our bio.@scottishmountainrescue#mountainrescue #prehospital #CriticalCare ... See MoreSee Less

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Torridon Mountain Rescue Team updated their cover photo.

4 weeks ago

Torridon Mountain Rescue Team
Torridon Mountain Rescue Team's cover photo ... See MoreSee Less

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       Scottish Mountain Rescue
        St John Scotland

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teamleader[at]torridonmrt.org.uk

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