Pi££ Poor Preperation

[Alan De Enfield]

Four Idiots climb Ben Nevis wearing trainers in the middle of Storm Ciara putting 22 Mountain rescue volunteers in danger.

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/ar...80mph-blizzard-scaling-mountain-TRAINERS.html

Four 'absolute idiots' are rescued from Ben Nevis in an 80mph blizzard after attempting to climb the UK's highest mountain during Storm Ciara while wearing TRAINERS

• The suspected Glasgow-based students became trapped by the 4,413ft-high summit during Storm Ciara
• All four were poorly-equipped, with no ice axes, crampons, or even maps on them, and wearing trainers
• They even got separated during the storm, and would probably not have made it through the night
• When all hope seemed lost, 22 volunteers from Lochaber Mountain Rescue Team stormed to their rescue
• After a long rescue operation during the 80mph blizzard, they were transferred to hospital in Fort William
• John Stevenson, leader of the rescue team, called them a 'bunch of idiots' who are 'lucky to be alive'

 

[Janne]

The rescuers were not in much danger, as they know what they are doing.
Those four fools should be made to pay the Rescue team organisation.

 

[Riven]

They should be up for a Darwin Award.

 

[Robson Valley]

If they had conveniently frozen their willies, then they would qualify for a D. A.
You have to take yourself out of the gene pool. Dying also qualifies.

Send them the rescue bill. More and more common here.

 

[Craig-SM]

Some real brain donors there. Luckily all made it back, shame they’re not having to foot the bill for their stupidity

 

[Corso]

Not unlike the idiot surfer in Hastings

Look what his recue team had to go through

 

[Fadcode]

Remember we are Humans, and we do stupid very well, if we didn't, we would not have mountain Rescue, Ambulances, Firemen etc etc.
I am sure these idiots have learned a valuable life lesson, and luckily have been spared, if you think they should pay for the cost of being saved, next time you collapse, have an accident, or burn your house down, make sure you have your cheque book handy.

 

[Janne]

We pay taxes to have the 'normal' stuff covered, and insurances ( house, car) to cover those.

Just an example: If I am pi$$ed out of my mind and crash my car, will my car insurance pay?
I doubt it.

There are normal accidents ( you clip and break a bone) and need to be rescued, then there are idiots that do not think ( climbing mountain in storm) and needs to be rescued.

We get idiots like that here too. They are everywhere. Search Youtube on 'extreme sports'.

I remember some years back. A group of teenagers tried to surf the day after a Tropical Storm.
Police could not stop them going out on the boards. At the end, one girl plowed headfirst into the beach.
Wife and me saw it.

I hope she had a good insurance, and managed to find a good plastic surgeon.

 

[Fadcode]

proved my point very well Janne....Thank you

 

[Corso]

Remember we are Humans, and we do stupid very well, if we didn't, we would not have mountain Rescue, Ambulances, Firemen etc etc.
I am sure these idiots have learned a valuable life lesson, and luckily have been spared, if you think they should pay for the cost of being saved, next time you collapse, have an accident, or burn your house down, make sure you have your cheque book handy.

The emergency services arn't there for the stupid - they are there for the unfortunate

Frankly put yourself at risk you have only yourself to blame and should expect somone else to put their life at risk to save you

 

[Janne]

The rescuers were not in much risk. They are trained to cope with situations like that. Also trained to recognize the limits for themselves.

 

[Fadcode]

its where do you draw the line, there were two people killed in this storm, both men, one driving his car and a tree fell on him, the other taking the dog for a walk, and a branch fell on him, were they stupid to go out?, where the Council stupid for allowing the tree to become a danger, should the car maker be at fault because the car had a weak roof.
Life isn't easy we all put ourselves at risk, many times, maybe we are just lucky.
I am not saying these students were not stupid, they were, and luckily they got away with it.
But we do have a lot of people who find enjoyment in doing dangerous things, hang-gliding, parachuting, surfing, Caving, etc etc etc
In a way they all do stupid things, but only when they go wrong, any other time they just enjoy themselves.

 

[Craig-SM]

Accidents happen and no amounting of training can prevent one from happening only minimises the likelihood.

 

[Toddy]

Daft lads, and good on Lochaber Mountain Rescue.
If they do some fundraising, and aren't so stupid again, the Mountain Rescue folks would think better on them.
https://news.stv.tv/highlands-islands/rescued-climbers-wore-trainers-during-ben-nevis-blizzard

https://www.lochabermrt.co.uk


In a statement, the team said the four were extremely lucky: ‘No winter kit – no ice axes, no crampons – and as far as we are aware no maps. Three of the guys were in trainers!

‘They were about 150 metres down into Coire Eoghainn on steep ice and if they had slipped or gone down any further consequences could have been far more serious.

‘What Three Words app took team to within metres of their location. Fair does to the guys as they did survive in some of the most challenging weather this year. Could have so easily ended up so different.

‘Fantastic effort by the team members to find them and get them down safely. Thanks to R151 [Coastguard helicopter] for assistance and some great flying to get casualties lifted from Half Way Lochan.’

"WHY WE DO IT...
We are all keen outdoor enthusiasts who understand that no matter how fit, experienced or well-equipped you are, things can always go wrong. We know that mountain rescue volunteers often provide the only chance of rescue for those lost, injured or stuck in remote or inaccessible locations."

I hope the students do do some fundraising for the Lochaber mountain rescue folks. It's the least they can do.

Thing is that Ben Nevis looks so simple, and in Summer folks do walk up it in trainers. It's used for sponsored races, carrying all sorts of daft things, like beds....but when the weather turns, it's a different place entirely.
http://www.bennevisrace.co.uk

Sounds like the idiots just didn't know any better.

M

 

[Fadcode]

Have a look at this on you tube
Newhaven Lifeboat Exercise 09/02/20 in Storm Ciara
just practicing

 

[Toddy]

Brave folks, good on them

I saw a news article a while ago where a lady fell in an underground station in America, and after being pulled off the tracks, bruised and bloody, etc., she pleaded with the people around NOT to phone an ambulance, because she couldn't afford it.

That's not civilisation, that's capitalisation run rampant.

The Lifeboat and Mountain Rescue Teams don't want that situation to ever arise.

If you need help, then they'll do their very best to help.

My husband and sons hillwalk, climb, etc.. I put some cash in every MRT rattling can I pass. I do it for the Lifeboat folks too, we did a lot of sea canoeing and I still have a lot of friends who sail and kayak.
Every little helps.

 

[Woody girl]

My pennies go into air ambulance for similar reasons. I ride a bike and never know if I might need it one day, especially on the moorland roads. It can take up to an hour for a land ambulance to get to this area.

 

[Nomad64]

I hope the lesson that these four take from this is an understanding of risk management and how to undertake an effective risk assessment.

The much maligned risk assessments should not be a box ticking exercise or a symptom of the “nanny state” or “elf and safety gorn mad” but an essential life skill which we all undertake a thousand times a day without thinking and should be a conscious exercise before undertaking something like this.

Stuff happens and MRT, RNLI, cave rescue and other volunteers do not begrudge giving up their time or potentially putting themselves in harms way for people who have taken reasonable steps to manage the risks inherent with being in the hills or at sea and have got unlucky but understandably have sense of humour failures when people wilfully put themselves at risk. I guess its a bit like surgeons or oncologists treating someone with lung cancer - they will treat all cases professionally and compassionately but inevitably will have more sympathy for those who have not contributed to their condition by persisting with smoking despite all warnings as to the likely consequences.

Should they be required to pay - no, as Toddy says, we are still a (fairly) civilised country and public shaming and ridicule should be sufficient but I would hope that treat this what we now seem to call a “teachable moment”, undertake some MRT fundraising and ideally some formal training.

Edit: spelling and to note that the “three words” location system did work for them.

 

[Robson Valley]

Most major ski resorts here have very, very well marked boundaries. Ropes and fences. BIG signs.
The resorts spend bundles of money on boundary barriers and time and effort to assess weak layers for avalanches.
Still, fools abound who deliberately duck under the ropes. They should pay, should they survive.
Ignorance is one thing, using stupidity as a crutch won't cut it here.

I buy for the local Search and Rescue equipment budget.
It's crucial when safe, to recover bodies before the wolves, cats and coyotes dig them up.
You never have to explain that to grieving family.

 

[stevec]

Lochaber MRT has posted on Facebook, they are against people being forced to get insurance for this. They say the people were not UK nationals and were unaware of where to find mountain weather info. It was also shown the level of their appreciation, bottle of scotch, 2 wine, 2 chocolate, card and 200 euro. Unprompted which is better than most UK nationals by their account.