Cam Spout Crag
The news that Jasper was found at 2:30 in the morning has been universally greeted by the tens of thousands of followers on Facebook and Twitter and the news reported on mainstream media by ITV. Aside from being a rare "happy ending" story the tale and the public's reaction carry some important lessons for businesses and the general public. One of the most important lessons is a timely reminder, as winter approaches, that Mountain Rescue Teams do far more than help injured and lost hill walkers and climbers. Alongside rescuing fellow outdoor enthusiasts the teams are regularly called on to assist in searches and rescues of anything from missing people to stranded livestock. When the news screens are full of images of motorists stranded on snowbound roads it's Mountain Rescue Teams that are called on to fight their way through the drifts and when people are venting over the cost of rescuing a straned climber they forget the countless times those same rescuers are out searching for elderly or vulnerable people who've gone missing in towns.
They've searched for and found missing children and vulnerable adults, on and off the hills, whilst administering sympathetic support to their families. They've searched river banks and swift water, aiding swimmers and kayakers – and a few who clearly never intended to get wet. And they've rescued a frankly stunning number of dogs, cows, sheep and any number of other animals, from all manner of inaccessible places. All this whilst continuing to practise and hone their skills in first aid and casualty care, technical ropework, water rescue, search management, maintaining their bases, equipment and vehicles. In 2012, the most recent year for which full statistics are available, the largest ever deployment of MR resources was called upon in the search for April Jones around Machynlleth and a further 420 non-mountain incidents were recorded in England and Wales. In 2010 this number was over 700 with over 100 injured people assisted in each of the last 5 years in non-mountain incidents. As financial constraints cut into the statutory emergency services MRT teams are increasingly being called upon to what are called "resilience" deployments, assisting the Police and Ambulance in busy periods and poor weather.
The photo that sent the search viral ©Adam Nolan
The publicity generated by the story will hopefully see an increase in donations to Mountain Rescue Teams across the country, and particularly Wasdale MRT who are fundraising for a new base at present. Mr Nolan, from Whitehaven, posted the news of Jasper's rescue to over 6000 Facebook followers along with the message "I'm over the moon to announce the safe return of my best friend Jasper.
"This morning Geoff Horky ascended Scafell Pike in response to the information received yesterday regarding the sighting of Jasper Near the Scafell Pike summit. Geoff found Jasper at 2am in very good condition. The Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team were then alerted and began the rescue operation. Upon hearing the news I followed the Wasdale Mountain Rescue team to Lingmell Col were I was united with Jasper.
"Naturally there are numerous individual who I would like to thank, but at the moment I would say a huge thank you to Geoff and the Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team for their heroic efforts this morning." "Currently the team are aiming to raise £500,000 for a new base. I'd also like to remind you that these special guys undertake their work on a completely voluntary and unpaid basis. All the help you can give these guys would be greatly appreciated."
People can donate using the Adam's Just Giving Page with the total raised at 1pm today (Thursday) already standing at over £12,000