Page 18 - 2020 AMA Summer

GUESTWRITER
REFLECTIONS FROM...
A MOUNTAIN
Jim Langley
a rescue service whilst controlling the spread of infection.
Our new call out procedures aim to minimise ‘troops’ on the hill and also to rely more heavily on the use of technology, such as PhoneFine or SARLOC, in locating and bringing casualties off the hill, without the need to deploy team members, if appropriate. For all injured casualties we will follow clinical guidance and if there is immediate threat to life, the Coastguard helicopter is still available. We also provide a capability to assist civil aid emergencies such as flooding and extreme weather events and will continue to provide this where possible.
Our team currently has fifty members but our capacity has reduced considerably, with 30% of members self isolating due to their age and/or medical conditions whilst others maintain social distancing as key
RESCUE VOLUNTEER
Jim Langley
Anotification popped up on social media this morning of an event I’d planned five years ago. The event was to see 125 people light up the night timeridgeline of our most iconic mountain in Snowdonia – Tryfan. There were rescue team members past and present involved, along with the mountain rescue team from RAF Valley and a raft of supporters, some of whom had been rescued in the past and some that had never been on a mountain at night before.
It was planned as part of a year of celebrating fifty years since the Ogwen Valley Mountain Rescue Organisation (OVMRO) came into existence. As I reflect back on that amazing event from my current lockdown position at home, I think of my time with the team over the past twelve years, the experiences I have had, what it has meant to me and how, as a team, we are ready and able to deal with any challenging situation that arises.
Its now four weeks since the country entered the stage 2 ‘delay’ phase of the corona virus outbreak. The financial impact of social isolation is starting to bite. I run a small business in environ- mental training and also work as an alpine trekking guide. Overnight all my work for the next five months came to a crashing halt. With huge uncertainty of when the restrictions will be lifted, I’m unsure when I will be able to return to work and start earning money again.
This concern is shared by the wider outdoor industry, some of who are also dedicated members of mountain rescue teams. There are, however, far greater concerns for operational rescue team
members who are key workers and who face a greater risk to their own health as frontline doctors, paramedics and NHS workers dealing with the crisis.
The impact of the lockdown has put pressure on all mountain rescue teams, who are well known for their resilience and ability to support the emergency services. As news spread of an epidemic in early March the team closely monitored news channels and began contingency planning around the main risks.
Statements were published in accordance with government guidelines advising people to stay home and we began to tighten our operational procedures and introduce precautionary measures. Non-essential meetings and all training events were cancelled or postponed and the use of video conferencing was implemented to ensure resilience as
18 / ARMY MOUNTAINEER
Trg horiz lower Tin Can with y Garn