Greysouthen climber thanks Keswick Mountain Rescue Team after fall

Rowan Morgan, 24, from Greysouthen, who works as an instructor at Go Ape, had done the route a number of times previously, after climbing for five years.

Keswick Mountain Rescue Team (MRT) were called out to Bram Quarry Cragg at 7.56pm on Thursday, June 29 whilst on a training exercise.

He was climbing with his girlfriend who alerted other climbers to the incident, with the group then ringing the mountain rescue team.

Talking about the incident Rowan said: “It all happened very quickly and due to the nature of the head injury I can’t really remember what went on, the last thing I remember was starting off on the route that I would then fall off.

“I was climbing the route in the route in the quarry which is protected by bolts in the rock. It is on a fairly routine basis as climbers that we would fall off on to the bolts to be caught by our partner on the rope.

The piece of rock with the bolt protection (Image: Keswick MRT)

“I went to do this as I was used to, and the entire section of the rock where the bolt was embedded, sheered off the wall and came down with me around 30 feet.

“I don’t remember falling or hitting the ground. The first thing I remember was actually seeing a member of the mountain rescue team.”

Rowan said that although he is said to have remained conscious throughout the incident, he does not remember any part of the experience which has left him with a concussion and injured neck.

He said: “I think I was very reassured when they came, I am told I was talking to them and thanking them a lot at the time. I think I was very reassured.

“Also being swaddled up in the stretcher, that made me feel much more at ease, they have a very professional manner and do a very good job at taking the situation in hand.

“It is essential, to the degree that a lot of us now take for granted, they are always there in rapid time, they deal with any situation with safety and professionalism.

"Many of us can’t really imagine a world without them in the outdoors.

“They are this fantastic last line of defence against people being seriously injured or even perishing in the outdoors.”

When asked what he would say to his rescuers, Rowan said: “A huge thank you, from myself and my girlfriend, there’s nothing more I can say than thank you.

"I would definitely like to join the ranks myself one day. I would hope to join them as a team member one day.”

Rowan had fractured vertebrate following the fall and believes if he had not been immobilised quickly by the team at the incident, things could have been much worse.