Four in five mountain rescues are to Croagh Patrick

Four in five mountain rescues are to Croagh Patrick

Anton McNulty

Over 80 percent of all of Mayo Mountain Rescue’s callouts for 2014 have been to Croagh Patrick, the organisation has revealed.
So far this year, Mayo Mountain Rescue has responded to 36 callouts. Of that figure, 30 were to rescues on Croagh Patrick while the remaining six were to other locations, including Mweelrea and Nephin.
Mayo Mountain Rescue has 35 volunteer members and excluding training, meetings, or fundraising, the organisation has put in approximately 1,100 volunteer rescue hours already this year. Volunteers were called to a number of rescues over the past week, including an operation on Croagh Patrick last Wednesday when they rescued a man who fell and suffered head and spinal injuries.
The operation was difficult due to unseasonable weather, with the volunteers having to tend with extremely high winds near the summit. They winds were so strong the rescue helicopter could not be deployed.
The injured male, who was in his 20s, fell near the church. He was stretchered from the mountain and brought him to Mayo General Hospital by ambulence.

Visibility poor
Despite the treacherous conditions on the day a number of people attempted to climb the mountain. A spokesperson for Mayo Mountain Rescue explained they had to turn people back down the mountain as they brought the casualty down.
The spokesperson said that he had never experienced conditions like it for the time of year and added that visibility was poor.
Meanwhile, volunteers were called out to two separate rescues on Nephin and Mweelrea on Friday after walking groups got caught in mist and fog.
The Nephin rescue occurred at around 3.30pm when a man suffered a minor lower-leg injury. Closing fog and mist meant he and his friend could not find their route down. A rescue team was sent and the man was brought safely home at 9.30pm.
The Mweelrea rescue involved a group of walkers, one of whom  had sustained a minor injury. They were also lost in fog and mist. They called in the assistance of the Mayo Mountain Rescue and were safely taken from the mountain.