2024 Callouts
29th March
We were called out by South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust at 1300 to help a female in need of assistance on steep tracks near Shaugh Bridge.
She had been assessed by SWAST for medical assistance and required our help to stretcher her back to Shaugh Bridge car park.
We were stood down a couple of hours later, having safely transferred her to the waiting ambulance.
28th March
We were called at 10:30 to assist our sister team Dartmoor Search and Rescue Tavistock with a search for a high-risk missing person in the Brentor/Mary Tavy area.
They had been out since late Wednesday 27th in very difficult conditions such as heavy snowfall, rain, hail compounded by slippery mud and poor visibility.
The treacherous conditions continued with Plymouth’s search of varying areas around Lydford Gorge and Viaduct, and Brentor.
It was determined around 17:30 that the missing person was confirmed to have left the search area, and we were stood down shortly thereafter.
24th March
A busy Sunday for the team with a second callout from Devon & Cornwall Police at 2100 hrs, to look for a High Risk missing person from Beatland Cross, near Lee Moor with our sister team Dartmoor Search and Rescue Team - Ashburton.
On arrival, we were advised that the missing person had been located safe and well and we were stood down.
24th March
At 1530 hours, along with our colleagues from East Cornwall Search & Rescue Team, we attended Saltash in Cornwall, to assist Devon & Cornwall Police to look for a High Risk missing person.
On arrival at the rendezvous point, three search teams were allocated their respective search areas and deployed soon after.
We are pleased to report that the missing person was found safe and well, within the Saltash area, and we were stood down at 1800 hrs.
16th March
A call came in at 23.50 for a team of 4 males training for Ten Tors. The alarm was raised when they hadn’t arrived at their scheduled camp stop for the evening.
Starting from Two Bridges, the search teams spent 8 hours searching across 24 sq.km of moorland in atrocious conditions over the group’s planned route. Heavy rain, mist and flooded paths made searching difficult.
The teams re-traced possible routes the group may have used to traverse the moor as well as dealing with alternative routes across rivers which were very high.
At around 7am, the team were found soon after they resumed their walk, having found a sheltered spot to camp, a good distance from their planned river crossing point.
The team were well equipped and did exactly the right thing. They had to go off route and their mobile phones didn’t have reception, so they camped and waited until the morning.
A very good outcome for all!
23rd February
As the events in Keyham developed overnight, the Police and Bomb Disposal experts determined the safest course of action was to remove the bomb and dispose of it at sea. As this would involve displacing residents along the intended route of the bomb, we were tasked with visiting more properties and ensuring all residents could leave.
These 2 days were a world away from Dartmoor, but an amazing experience to be part of a huge multi-agency operation to ensure the safety and security of Keyham, Ford and Devonport residents.
22nd February
The team were deployed from 7am, tasked with assisting the Police and other emergency services (Fire & Coastguard) with a mass evacuation in Keyham, Plymouth, where a large unexploded WWII bomb was discovered a few days prior.
The team was tasked with speaking to resident in the exclusion zone to encourage any remaining to leave, and to gather numbers of those staying.
We stood down at 3.30pm as the Police and Bomb Disposal continued their work on making the device safe.
14th February
The team were called out at 15.45 to the Dewerstone to assist South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust Hazardous Area Response Team (HART) Paramedics with the extraction of a fallen climber from the upper buttresses of the Dewerstone.
In horrendous weather conditions, 18 members of the team attended alongside a rope rescue team from Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service Camels Head Fire Station.
Due to the casualty location, the terrain and the weather, the extraction required a significant descent by the rope teams before team members and the other agencies could safely get the casualty to the waiting ambulance.
Despite their injuries, the casualty remained in good spirits throughout the protracted rescue. We wish the casualty a swift recovery.
