Avon & Somerset Search & Rescue

Avon & Somerset Search and Rescue stay on the road with help from TLT

Thanks to the efforts of the law firm TLT we have upgraded two of our rescue vehicles.

ASSAR has been TLT’s Bristol charity of the year during 2016/2017, raising £8,547.50 which has been put towards the repair of two of their rescue ambulances.

The funds were raised through a series of fundraising events throughout the year, including the sponsored Welsh Three Peaks challenge which a team from TLT and ASSAR took on together, climbing Wales’ three highest mountains in under 24 hours.

Chris Thring, Chairman of ASSAR, said

“These vehicles are essential to our search and rescue operations. We cover 1800square miles across Avon and Somerset, so we have to be as mobile as possible to support the police and community.

Our new Incident Control vehicle is fitted with the latest search management computer systems to help find missing people and our technical rescue vehicle that responds to cliff rescues has had a complete facelift. The whole team is very grateful for the fundraising efforts of TLT and the team members who helped the TLT staff complete the Welsh Three Peaks – we were very impressed at their determination on a difficult challenge.”

Andrew Glynn, Senior Partner at TLT, said: “It’s fantastic to see what our fundraising efforts from the last year have helped to deliver. The volunteers at ASSAR provide essential, life-saving help for those in difficulty in the outdoors and in the search for missing persons. We are proud to help keep them on the road so they can continue to get to those in need.”

Posted on 09 / 10 / 2017

Rescued Cheddar Gorge Climber Tells His Story

It’s very rare that we help to rescue climbers these days. Climbers equipment, self-rescue skills and the rockfaces they climb on have all improved over the years.

Typically we get called out to search for and rescue ‘despondents’, people who are suicidal, or people who are vulnerable for mental health reasons. Invariably these call-outs can be quite tragic and mean that we can’t share many details about them.

Our recent callout on the evening of the 22nd May to help rescue a climber with a broken ankle and his partner is a rare occasion that we can share more details and hear from the casualty.

Simon Carobene and his partner were scrambling up the cliff to the start of their climbing route for the evening when he slipped.

We were called out at 19.39 to work alongside the Fire & Rescue Service and South West Ambulance Service to locate the climber, stabilise the injury and bring him down to the road and the waiting ambulance.

Simon reported, “I broke my ankle on the way to the start of a climbing route in Cheddar Gorge, and had to be rescued due to the awkward location. One of the ASSAR members, who as I remember was called Ian, climbed up to me and gave me a blanket and put my ankle into a splint. He also kept me company while we were waiting for the rope system to be set up, and then helped get me into a stretcher and lower me down to the road. I would very much like to thank him.

I would like to express my sincerest gratitude to ASSAR along with the fire and ambulance services and everyone who helped to get me down from the cliffs. They did an outstanding job of getting me out of a very tricky situation, and I really can’t thank everyone enough.

After being rescued, I spent five days in Weston General Hospital. Unfortunately I broke my ankle in three places and so had to have surgery to install metal fixtures on both sides of the ankle. I have been resting up at home for the past week and I am now slowly starting to feel better. It doesn’t look like I’ll be doing any climbing for some time now though!”

All the members of ASSAR wish Simon a speedy recovery and a long climbing career ahead of him.

Posted on 09 / 06 / 2017

TLT Solicitors Conquer Welsh 3 Peaks for ASSAR

A team of solicitors and lawyers from TLT conquered the Welsh 3 Peaks challenge on Saturday 27th May to raise funds for Avon & Somerset Search and Rescue.

Snowdon (1085m), Cadair Idris (893m) and Pen y Fan (886m), the three highest peaks in Wales all have to be conquered in less than 24 hours.

A brief storm at the start of Snowdon at 5am didn’t dampen their spirits. They then faced very difficult weather conditions on Cadair Idris with visibility down to a few metres, horizontal rain and very strong winds but completed the challenge. Pen y Fan was shrouded in low cloud and the light was fading fast but they completed the challenge in 17 hours.

Four team members helped them in the build up and then escorted them throughout the day. An ASSAR member said, “We were really impressed by their positive attitude and determination. The weather conditions were not as forecast and for some of them it was the first time they had faced wind and rain like that on a mountain.”

All the members of ASSAR thank TLT and their staff for their amazing fundraising effort that will help us to help people far from help.

Posted on 29 / 05 / 2017

Co-op Local Community Fund Helps Search and Rescue

Even we need help sometimes. That’s why we’re delighted to be chosen as one of the causes for the Co-op Local Community Fund, and here’s how you can help us to help people far from help.

Every time members buy Co‑op branded products and services, from buying a loaf of bread to planning a funeral, 1% of their spend goes to a local cause, like ours. The Co-op has even kick-started the fundraising by giving us a share of the 5p customers pay for plastic bags now.

Find out what we’re fundraising for here https://membership.coop.co.uk/causes/8538

You can help us to help people far from help by becoming Co‑op members, if you aren’t already sign up here.

Posted on 19 / 04 / 2017

THATCHERS FOUNDATION CONTRIBUTES TO VITAL RADIO EQUIPMENT

Our challenging role is to be made easier with new VHF digital radios thanks to a donation by the Thatchers Foundation.

We work closely with Avon & Somerset Police to typically search for and rescue missing individuals in difficult ground, including cliffs and water, covering around 1800 sq miles throughout Somerset, Bristol and Bath. The 50 volunteers that make Avon & Somerset Search and Rescue, are on call 24/7. A registered charity, we receive no funding from any public body and rely entirely on public subscription.

Chris Thring, chair of Avon & Somerset Search & Rescue comments, “Our volunteers provide a vital service in searching and rescuing from difficult ground. We rely on financial support to keep us going, we are therefore very grateful to The Thatchers Foundation for their donation which will be put to valuable use through contributing to the purchase of new digital VHF radios.

“Radio communication between the search and rescue teams, and between the search control vehicle and individual teams is essential for the effectiveness of the work we undertake. The radios we currently use, analogue VHF, are increasingly unreliable and their effectiveness is poor. The new digital VHF radios will have many advantages and will allow our teams to function effectively to serve the population.”

Mike Williamson, Trustee of The Thatchers Foundation, adds, “With the Mendips on our doorstep we are very aware of the commitment and dedication of the volunteers at the Avon & Somerset Search & Rescue. They deserve to have the most effective equipment to assist them in their challenging work, we are therefore very pleased to make this donation of £5,000 which will bring them towards their target for the purchase of their new radio communications.”

The Thatchers Foundation has been set up by the Thatcher family to help and support community and charitable activities, in particular in the parishes of Sandford, Winscombe and adjoining villages. Contributions to individuals or organisations may be through financial grants, or through the donation of time and physical help. For more information about the Thatchers Foundation, visit www.thatcherscider.co.uk/thatchers-charitable-foundation/

Posted on 25 / 02 / 2017