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On Boxing Day, 18 months and 1 day after Pete and I had our accident, I am finally doing something to say thankyou to the many many people who came out on a Sunday evening to rescue us. The majority of these were volunteers from South Wales Mountain Rescue, the others were ambulance paramedics, police officers and the RAF helicopter paramedics and doctor. The Welsh Air Ambulance was also called out but could not get us out because of the difficult situation we were in.
I was scrambling with Pete watching me from down below. A rock I reached out to pull myself up on came away completely and I fell backward and away from the rocks I had been on. Pete who was standing below on a ledge about a metre wide caught me to save me from landing on the back of my head, but he lost his footing and we both fell over a sheer drop below of about 15 feet. We hit branches as we fell and came to rest against a tree, (neither of us can actually rememer this part), but Pete remembers hearing his bone crack loudly as I landed on top of him. Luckily he had his mobile in his pocket and was able to dial 999. It took a long time to be found, as we had landed in a wooded area away from any footpath. We could hear a helicopter up above and voices of people down below us but we had no strength to shout loudly for help. Two young men found us, I think they had come in response to the helicopter and they managed to get to the ambulance men.
Once we had been located, the paramedics from the ambulance wanted to air lift us out, but there was no landing area for the helicopter and no clear area for an airlift out either, Mountain rescue were called in and as far as I understand it, trees were sawn down and an area cleared some 50m above where we had fallen. This was to create an open space into which the helicopter could lower a stretcher. The mountain rescue team then formed a double row of rescuers who passed our stretchers hand over hand up the slope to the cleared area. All I can remember of this is being strapped into the stretcher with my head fixed still and seeing face after face pass directly over me as I was passed along! My helicopter ride to hospital was disapointing for my first time in a helicopter as I was strapped down and could not take in the view! I remember the doctor talking to me , but the noise of the rotors and engine was so loud that I have no idea what she was saying. Looking back I think she was probably trying to keep me awake as I had concussion and had been knocked out.
Pete had a shattered femur, where I landed on him and I had broken ribs and a dislocated shoulder, but we have both made good recoveries.
The organisation of the rescue was impressive and I had not realised previously that all Mountain Rescuers are volunteers. So this is a little way of saying thank you to all those that helped us. I also value the help of the air ambulance team, the RAF helicopter team , the police and paramedics.
