12 January 09 - 21:01Wiltshire Scouts Save Injured Women

Three Explorer Scouts and one member of Scout Network helped their Leaders in rescuing an injured woman from the side of a mountain near Aviemore in Scotland.

Neil Wills, Scout Leader at North Bradley, was approached by the husband of the 29 year old woman as he decended Cairngorm mountain with a group of Scouts he was leading on an expedition.

Neil explained, 'About half way down I was approached by the woman's husband asking if we could alert the Mountain Ranger to her predicament and mount a rescue when we reached the bottom.

'I saw that we could help them out in a quicker and more efficient way by radioing our bus driver below, who alerted the Ranger whilst we made the lady comfy and sheltered her from the elements.'

The Ranger established their location approximately 1600 feet up the mountain, and that the temperature was dropping below zero with blowing snow and cloud cover as darkness fell.

Explorer Scouts Pete Woodhead, Harry Newman, David Keiller and Scout Network member Andrew Woodhead had been climbing different corries in the region and joined the mountain rescue team in constructing the stretcher before going back up the mountain to bring the lady down safely.

Scout Network member Andrew Woodhead who wants to become a mountain guide said, 'It was an honour to serve a fellow climber who really needed help, I would do it again should the occasion arise.'

They all trekked across the slopes to reach the woman after taking the mountain train half way up.

Eric Johns, Scout Leader and former RAF Mountain Rescue, strapped the woman's legs before she was raised onto the stretcher and carried by the four very helpful Scouts back down the slope to the waiting ambulance.

Explorer Harry Newman said, 'It was my first rescue and my good turn for the day, I felt proud to have played apart in her safe return.'

The lady was taken to Aviemore hospital nine miles away where she was treated for a break to the lower part of her left leg. She had slipped on compacted snow whilst not wearing crampons on her descent.

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12 January 09 - 20:27Cub Scout First To Earn All Badges

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The 33 accolades show Ben can canoe, hike, ride horses, cook basic dishes and even practice first aid.

Ben said, "It took me nearly two years, it was very difficult to accomplish but I feel quite proud.

"I really enjoyed my Adventure Badge; it taught me how to camp out with my friends. The most important badge I have achieved however is emergency aid, I feel confident that I could help my friends if they had an accident".

The youngster also gained badges including air activities; astronomy; book reading; camping; cycling, DIY, entertaining; home safety, martial arts, navigation, road safety, science and world faiths.

Ben's Mum Debs Spratling was thrilled as Ben was awarded with his final badge in time for Christmas. She said: "Ben has had a fantastic time trying out all the different activities and he's learned so much in the process.

"Joining the Scouts has given Ben the chance to experience a huge range of activities. There is simply no other organisation in our area that provides 8 to 10 year olds with the opportunity to try activities ranging from Canoeing and Climbing to Hiking and DIY".

One of Ben's greatest achievements was completing his Serco Personal Safety Badge where Cub Scouts learn about Rail Safety, the Firework Code and how to keep safe while using the Internet.

Worldwide Scouting has 28 million members both male and female and operates in nearly every country in the world.

At present there are nearly 30,000 young people on waiting lists.

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