Mountain rescue operations mounted in Highland Perthshire and other serious incidents will benefit from a new base unveiled this week.
In an example of joint working between Tayside Fire and Rescue and another vital service, Tayside Mountain Rescue has been granted space within Aberfeldy Fire Station to be used as a mountain rescue post.
The new facility was required because the post on Ben Lawers where rescue gear, ropes and ancillary equipment was stored was removed before the demolition of the visitor centre.
The equipment kept at Aberfeldy will not only be used in mountain rescues but incidents such as the efforts to rescue a trapped canoeist at Grandtully last year.
“The Aberfeldy base is a great option for mountain rescue as it brings together the resources we use in the Highland Perthshire area at incidents which can be multi-disciplined,” said Det Sgt Colin MacDougall, team leader of Tayside Police’s search and rescue unit.
“Although Grandtully was the catalyst for pushing this forward it was one example of this multi-disciplined approach where the partnership of the statutory rescue agencies came together with the civilian volunteers for a common purpose, each contributing their skills and resilience.
“The combination of fire and rescue, civilian and police mountain rescue and other charities such as Safe-Tay has made the sum of the whole very much greater than we could have achieved on our own for the benefit of the communities in the the Highland Perthshire area.
“This area accounts for two-thirds of the mountain rescue callouts for Tayside.
“Whilst it is regrettable that such incidents take place, people are drawn to the world-class facilities on offer in respect of adventure tourism and it’s only right that we should be prepared to assist those in need.
“Likewise the facility is there to assist the local population who work in remote areas where assistance following an accident can only be provided by those with specialist skills, training and access to the right equipment.”
Present at a ceremony at Aberfeldy this week were Deputy Chief Fire Officer Alasdair Hay who handed over the facilities to Eric Drummond, president of the Tayside Mountain Rescue Association.
Also present were members of Tayside Fire and Rescue Aberfeldy, members of Tayside Mountain Rescue Team, Tayside Police Search and Rescue Unit and Lisa Stuart from Safe-Tay.
“I see this as an excellent initiative,” said Lisa Stuart. “We are extremely pleased to be given the opportunity to help support the new mountain rescue post financially.
“Any suitable equipment to assist responders when called to a water response or mountain rescue will only increase the rescue capability in the event of an incident. We are pleased to be donating funds to support this initiative.”