The Peak District Mountain Rescue Organisation is the umbrella body for Mountain Rescue in the Peak District.
The Peak District Mountain Rescue Organisation (P.D.M.R.O.) was formed in 1964 following the death during the bad winter of 1963 of two climbers in an avalanche in Wilderness Gully, Chew Valley, and a multiple fatal accident during the 1964 Four Inns Walk. Prior to then there were few mountain rescue teams in the Peak District. These were uncoordinated and inadequately equipped.
The two tragedies in 1964 demonstrated the need for coordination of the few teams that did exist and the need to establish others. The P.D.M.R.O. was established to co-ordinate the activities of all the Mountain Rescue Teams in the Peak District and thus assist the Police with all mountain rescue incidents.
The prime objectives of the P.D.M.R.O. are to save life and alleviate distress, primarily in Upland and Mountain areas. In addition the organisation:
Supports member teams in their mountain rescue activities.
Coordinates all rescue incidents. Encourages & develops good practice in Mountain Rescue.
Assists in the recovery of animals from locations where mountain rescue skills are needed.
Represents the member teams’ interests to other bodies.
Encourages the transfer of skills and knowledge to young people and other community groups.
Mountain rescue teams provide an essential service not only to walkers and climbers but also to the local community. Their prime role is to provide a Search & Rescue service in upland or mountainous areas. However, the Teams are increasingly calling upon to undertake searches for missing people in lowland areas.
Teams
The P.D.M.R.O. consists of seven civilian mountain rescue teams (MRT), Buxton, Derby, Edale, Glossop, Kinder, Oldham, and Woodhead as well as the Peak District Area of the Search and Rescue Dog Association of England and Wales (SARDA) , the RAF Mountain Rescue Team based at Stafford and the Derbyshire Cave Rescue Organisation.
Each civilian team is a self-contained unit with its own equipment, supplies, vehicles and communications. All members are trained in all aspects of first aid, casualty care and can affect rescue from remote moorland, cliffs or crashed aircraft. Every team member wears and/or carries personal survival equipment and can remain operational, unsupported for more than 12 hours. Teams have about 40 to 50 members.
Teams can call on a variaty of other resources, including land and air ambulances, RAF / RN rescue helicopters, police helicopters and RAF Nimrod aircraft.
If you are interested in joining a team and want to find out more then please contact the P.D.M.R.O.Secretary who will put you in touch with the team nearest to your home.
Generally you’ll need to have
Commitment, motivation and a sense of humour
Navigation and first aid skills
Personal transport
An ability to work in a disciplined team
SARDA Peak
The Search And Rescue Dog Association currently have 6 qualified dog handlers in the Peak District. These handlers are drawn from the individual teams but are often called upon to provide search dog support in any area of the Peak region, and indeed often outside.
Buxton MRT was formed in 1964, although an earlier R.A.F. team was based at Harpur Hill during the war years. The team is a division of the St John Ambulance.
Derby MRT was formed in 1964 as a direct result of the Four Inns Walk tragedy when three Rover Scouts died. Initially the team consisted of members of the 51st. Derby (St. Luke’s) Rover Scout Crew who were the organisers of the event and who were keen on walking and climbing. The team still retains its links with the Scout Association. Derby Mountain Rescue Team covers a large area of the southern Peak District, north to Milldale and Chatsworth and as far south as Milton Keynes.
Edale MRT traces it’s roots back to the formation of the Peak District National Park Warden Service In the early 1950s. For many years its members were recruited exclusively from the ranks of the professional and volunteer wardens (later Rangers) of the Peak Park. Although the formal link with the National Park Authority was severed in the early 1980s the team still maintains a strong liaison with the Ranger Service.
Glossop MRT owes its origins to a team of rover scouts formed in 1959, which merged with the Glossop Moorland rescue team in 1965 to form the present team.
Kinder MRT came into being in the late 1960s as a result of the amalgamation of the Sett Valley and the Goyt Valley teams. The team is based at Hayfield and operates in the area of Kinder Scout and west towards Stockport
Oldham MRT was started by the Scout organisation and was called the Oldham Rover Scout Mountain Rescue Team. During the 70s the team became independent and was made into a charitable trust.
Woodhead MRT was formed in the early ’70s by the amalgamation of the Huddersfield Scout MRT, Stockbridge Barugh Rovers and Sheffield Scout MRT that were formed after the 1964 Four Inns fatalities. The team covers the North Eastern area of the Peak District.
Derbyshire Cave Rescue
DCRO have special responsibilty for rescue from caves in the Peak Discrtict and so cover the whole of Peak. They are also the closest Cave Rescue Team to areas from Cheshire to Linconshire to Bedfordshire.