“Unsustainable" amount of mountain rescue callouts in Lake District
Just this week two men were rescued from Scafell Pike
Lake District Mountain Rescue teams have had one of their busiest years - attending a record 680 callouts in 2021.
The amount of callouts has been called "unsustainable" as more and more inexperienced walkers are travelling to the UK countryside.
Rescue of two Mancunian men from Scafell Pike
Just this week, Lake District Mountain Rescue rescued two men from Manchester who believed they were going to die after becoming stranded on Scafell Pike.
The rescue of the two Mancunian men from Scafell Pike, the tallest mountain in the UK, took eight hours from beginning to end.
Richard Warren, Chairman of the Lake District Search and Mountain Rescue Association, said: "The weather was foul because it started with freezing rain, then moved to sleet, then moved very quickly to very heavy driving snow. Bitterly, bitterly cold."
The Lake District Mountain Rescue have said that the two men were totally unprepared for being on the mountain.
Mr Warren added: "They hadn't looked at the weather, the weren't prepared, they had no waterproofs, no maps and no compass. We wish them well and hope that they do eventually get themselves back to Manchester."
Last year alone, Lake District Mountain Rescue attended to a record number of 680 callouts.
"It is typical of the lack of preparation that's taking place"
Earlier this week a man in his 50's slipped on ice on Great Howe on Tuesday morning (4th January), and unfortunately died at the scene.
The Lake District Search and Mountain Rescue Association Chairman warns that more walkers should be prepared for the dangers the mountain can bring, especially if they are inexperienced.
Mr Warren said: "Many of them have never been on a mountain before and never been on a mountain when it gets dark, so it's pretty terrifying for them. It is typical of the lack of preparation that's taking place."