Another early start for call-handlers at both Aberdyfi and South Snowdonia Search & Rescue Team with a 3:30 a.m. call regarding a missing person near Barmouth.

The male had been reported missing at around 9:30 p.m. the previous evening, and having conducted a local search with no result, North Wales Police officers decided to extend the search to the steep ground above the town and requested assistance from Mountain Rescue Services. The call came through initially to the Aberdyfi Team, and discussions on the best approach were conducted between team leaders from both Aberdyfi and South Snowdonia Team (in whose area Barmouth falls). Searching at night presents extra hazards to rescue workers, both in terms of their movements on the hill and the knock-on effects of driving to and away from incidents with little or no sleep. Having weighed up the circumstances, including the equipment carried by the missing person and the mild prevailing weather conditions, it was decided that the South Snowdonia Team would initiate a search at 7:00 a.m. As rescuers gathered, the missing person turned up, safe and well at around 7:30 a.m.

 ASART volunteer team co-ordinators faced an early start when at 2:40 a.m. reports were received of a flashing light spotted above Dolgellau on the ridge below Mynydd Moel.

As well as the first informant, the light was observed by local Police officers and a local team member joined them to assess the situation. Having viewed the area, talked to the first informant and local Police officers, a decision was taken that the source was moving when last spotted, and therefore unlikely to be a distress call. It was concluded that this was a false alarm-with good intent, and by 5:30 a.m. team members were back in bed. Unfortunately some were then woken at 7:30 a.m. by another call-handler  who had missed the original message and wanted to know what was going on. Sorry Dave!

At about 1:30 p.m. volunteers from Aberdyfi Search & Rescue Team were alerted to a man suspected to have suffered a stroke on the hills near Devil's Bridge. The ambulance service was in attendance, but needed assistance in evacuating the casualty. A helicopter rescue had been ruled out because of low cloud and so both ASART and Brecon MRT were requested.

As the teams were en route, a window in the weather meant that a helicopter was able to get the man out, and both teams were stood down.

At around  5:20 p.m.  on Saturday 5th July, Aberdyfi  Search and Rescue Team (ASART) were alerted to a 44 yr old man missing on Arran Fawddwy.

The man had been walking the Arran Ridge from Llanuwchllyn with a group of friends. Feeling tired, he stopped to rest whilst the others pressed on to summit Arran Fawddwy, but on their return the man was no longer in position. The group continued down, assuming that the man must have done the same, but on their return to the village, there was no sign of him.

The North Wales Police Air Support Unit helicopter was available to help, an excellent option given the good visibility. Assistance was requested, and the crew began a sweep of the ridge-line, while volunteers from the Team were put on standby.

While news of the helicopter search was awaited, a second call came in from North Wales Police reporting concerns for an overdue walker near Aberdyfi. The 27 year old woman was walking between Abergynolwyn and Pennal to meet her friend but had not appeared at the agreed time. A team leader contacted the friend who reported that she had made phone contact with the missing walker and that all was well. The call-out was about to be cancelled when the walker got back in contact to say she didn’t know where she was. An attempt to get a fix on her position using the SARLOC smart-phone protocol was attempted but could not get a good enough phone signal.  As the next moves by ASART were being planned, the walker encountered another party who were able to give her correct directions to reach her destination.

As this second call-out was being closed down, news came in that the Police helicopter had located the missing man a good distance from his last known position on the Arran Ridge. He had set off to descend as predicted, but had drifted a good way off the expected route. The involvement of the Police Helicopter significantly speeded up the search for the man, and it saved the Team a long evening on the hill.