We were called for assistance at 2130 to a 16 year old female who was participating in a DoE walk. Team members were deployed and other assets were stood up should the situation deteriorate. Once the casualty's condition was assessed, she was able to remain on the hill overnight & walk off in the morning with her friends. Stood down at 0130 with 20 team members attending.
At 2pm on Friday afternoon the team were called to assist the South Western Ambulance Service NHS Foundation Trust with the evacuation of a casualty with a suspected broken leg from Birch Tor. Birch Tor is approximately 1km north east of the Warren House Inn in an area moorland riddled with deep mining gullies. Personnel from the Devon Air Ambulance Trust were first on scene. They were then joined by an advance party of our volunteers who provided a bothy shelter to protect the casualty from the worst of the elements. The main party then arrived and the casualty was then safely evacuated by stretcher. Technical rope techniques used in the steep, wet, difficult sections. Sixteen of our volunteers were able to assist.
At 2pm on Thursday 7th March the team were called out by Devon & Cornwall Police to assist in the search for a vulnerable male in the Baker’s Park area of Newton Abbot. The highest probability areas were identified and then searched. The individual was found at approximately 7pm but was sadly deceased. Our thoughts are with the individual’s friends and family.
At 09:24 on Wednesday 28th February the team were called out by Devon & Cornwall Police to assist in the search for a high risk 60-year-old male from Buckfastleigh. The highest priority areas were quickly identified and 17 of our volunteers were deployed to search. Within an hour the individual was found but was sadly deceased. Our thoughts are with the individual’s friends and family.
Family-run Bays Brewery in Paignton is helping raise much-needed funds for Dartmoor Search & Rescue (Ashburton) with the launch of its brand-new charity brew ‘Tracker Ale’.
Available in bottles, cask and beer boxes from 26 February 2024, the smooth pale ale is made using a blend of UK and American hops, with tropical aromas as mysterious as the moorland landscape.
Bays will be donating 5% of every pint and bottle sold to the Ashburton division to help fund the replacement of its oldest Land Rover for future missions in Torbay, Dartmoor and East Devon.
The Devon charity is made up of more than 60 volunteers who provide 24/7 on-call assistance to the emergency services with the search and rescue of the lost, missing, injured and vulnerable.
Its team attends a range of incidents including steep ground and swift water rescues throughout Dartmoor, Devon and the South West, as well as major incidents across England and Wales.
With over 92% of its income reliant on public support, 5% of proceeds from ‘Tracker Ale’ will help the Dartmoor rescuers purchase a new vehicle for transporting team members and kit to and during incidents across South Devon and Torbay.
Director of Bays Brewery, Peter Salmon, said: “As a family-run brewery that’s passionate about flying the flag for the local area, we’re always looking at how we can give something back to our community and ‘Tracker Ale’ is a great way to say ‘cheers’ to a charity close to our hearts.
“We’re thrilled to be working with the Ashburton team – a group of volunteers who respond to incidents in Torbay and beyond, and without whom the emergency services would not have enough resources to search for those in need.”
Kevin Chamberlain from Dartmoor Search & Rescue (Ashburton) added: “The Team attend around 40 incidents a year at the request of Devon & Cornwall Police, and our volunteers give up a lot of their time attending callouts, training and maintaining vehicles and equipment.
“It’s great to have the support of local businesses like Bays Brewery with our fundraising, and especially as their product, a great range of beers, is an important part of our team building after training and incidents.”
As well as ‘Tracker Ale’, the Paignton-based brewery is supporting a number of other top Devon charities throughout 2024 with its limited-edition ‘charity brews’ concept.
Its second charity beer ‘Funky Monkey’ will be available from April and will see the Torbay brewery partner up with its good friends at Paignton Zoo once again to celebrate its new baboon enclosure.
In July, its third charity brew ‘Chopper Ale’ will take flight, with beer drinkers able to enjoy their pint in the knowledge that they are supporting the vital work of Devon Air Ambulance with every sip.
Completing the charity line-up from November will be ‘Jingle Ale’, a deep amber ale that spreads some festive cheer with 5% of proceeds supporting Children’s Hospice South West (CHSW).
For further details, images and video please contact:
Caroline Salmon, Marketing Manager T: 01803 555004
Email: This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
www.baysbrewery.co.uk #BaysBrewery
Notes for editor:
Bays Brewery
Bays Brewery is a family-run brewery that has been creating exceptional, multi-award-winning
craft beers in the stunning coastal resort of Torbay for 17 years and counting. Crafted to perfection the Devon way, it prides itself on serving a true taste of the South West with its firmly established flagship ales and refreshing craft lagers. www.baysbrewery.co.uk
Dartmoor Search & Rescue (Ashburton)
Established in 1968, the Ashburton division of Dartmoor Search & Rescue comprises of a highly-skilled, volunteer-led team who are on call 24/7. They are dedicated to assisting the emergency services with the search and rescue of the lost, missing, injured and vulnerable across South and East Devon from the moor to the coast, including urban areas such as Torbay and Exeter. www.dsrtashburton.org.uk
END
Callout 5/2024 Plymouth 07:00 22nd February 2024
6am – First volunteers arrive for initial briefings, 7am majority of volunteers arrive for further briefings. A 200m exclusion cordon around the device had to be implemented. After supporting the cordon evacuation activities during the morning our team stood down at 1230. Our colleagues from Dartmoor Search and Rescue Plymouth and Dartmoor Search and Rescue Tavistock continued to support the Police through the afternoon. On Thursday our team provided 20 volunteers with the total number of supporting personnel being in excess of 70. By the end of the day the bomb disposal experts concluded that the best course of action would be to remove the device from the ground, move it to a slipway and then onto a boat for controlled detonation at sea. The land transfer would require the cordon to be moved 100m further out. We along with the other voluntary and full-time emergency services were asked to return on Friday to assist with further evacuations.
Callout 6/2024 Plymouth 11:00 23rd February 2024
11am – volunteers and full-time emergency services muster at Home Park football ground. We provided 11 volunteers with further support from the other DRG teams and Exmoor. Teams tasked to support the final phases of evacuation in preparation for the transport of the unexploded bomb to the Torpoint ferry slip way at Devonport. Our teams were finally stood down at 5pm on Friday.
The Team were featured, and our Search Manager Kate interviewed, on Spotlight for lunchtime news.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001wlf7/spotlight-lunchtime-news-22022024 Interview at 02:45 on the clip
Not one of our normal callouts. We worked with a number of other agencies supporting Devon and Cornwall Police in evacuating a total of 10,000 people to allow the removal of an unexploded 500Kg World War 2 bomb from a residential garden in the Keyham area of Plymouth. This is currently being reported as one of the largest evacuations since the end or the second world war.
The team were called out at 20:00 on Saturday evening to assist Devon & Cornwall Police in a search for missing 72-year-old man in Wellswood area of Torquay. The man who suffered from dementia had also sustained a head injury earlier in the day and had subsequently gone missing. Dartmoor Search and Rescue Ashburton and the local HM Coastguard team were approached to assist in a search of woodland areas and costal paths. As our volunteers started to arrive at the scene the missing man was found by police the team stood down.
Callout 2 & 3/2024 Babbacombe 02:45 9th February 2024
We are very grateful the volunteers from Rapid Relief Team for providing food and drink during the search!
At 22:50 the team were called out for two teenagers who had their campsite flooded by heavy rain near the Avon Dam on the southern side of Dartmoor. Due to the darkness, high winds and rising water levels in the streams and rivers an advance party was quickly dispatched to locate the teenagers. While they walked in, the remainder of the team mustered at their rendezvous point at Shipley Bridge where additional teams were deployed to support the advance party. When the advance party located individuals, they were assessed and apart from being wet and cold they were found to be uninjured. They were then assisted in walking off the hill towards the Avon Dam. At the Avon Dam the teenagers were loaded into a team Landover and driven back to Shipley Bridge. The team were stood down at shortly before 01:00. We are grateful to 36 of our volunteers who supported who attended this callout.
Rob Illman is one of the Ashburton team’s longest-serving members and has helped hundreds of injured, missing or sick people in the last 41 years. He has participated in more than 1200 call-outs either receiving the call as Search Manager or as a team member.
Rob joined the team in 1982 - he had a couple of friends in the team & he was walking regularly on Dartmoor doing letterboxing, so he went along one day & joined up.
In his time on the team, he was Team Leader (Search Manager) for 17 years. He took a step back 11 years ago to be a Support Team Member and took on the role of driver. That has developed into being a qualified blue light driver; 4 years ago he became an MREW 4x4 Instructor, alongside colleagues, teaching members from across the region off-road skills.
Over those 41 years, he has been awarded 3 Queen's Jubilee medals (platinum, diamond & gold) recognising over 30 years of voluntary service. He was involved in the Snow Plan with the Local Resilience Forum and active in its execution on Haldon Hill, he was recognised for his outstanding contribution to the community by the former MP Barbara Follet. In addition, he has been involved in Ten Tors for over 30 years and was active in the evacuation in 1996 of participants due to a snowstorm. Rob said: “One particularly memorable call out would be when I returned home from Ten Tors early to attend a family party, only to be called out to search for a young high-risk vulnerable male who had gone missing in mid-Devon. Team members were only available by flying them in from the Ten Tors event. Thankfully, the young lad was found safe & well & the teams were able to return to Dartmoor by helicopter with thanks to the Army for their understanding & support.
“I want to thank all my colleagues in the team & in the emergency services for their support over the years & the nomination. I’m honoured to receive this.”
The Team's Search Managers were alerted to an overdue walker in the Haytor area. Almost as soon as the callout was sent to team members, the NPAS helicopter located the walker and the Team were stood down.
The Team were called by Devon & Cornwall police to assist with search for a young female who was reported missing in Newton Abbot. Once the Team had assembled the missing person contacted a friend, and in agreement with the police a decision was made that no further deployment was required as the person was not in immediate danger.
Just before 4am the team were contacted by Devon and Cornwall Police to assist in a multi-agency search for a vulnerable male. Eighteen of our volunteers and search dog Binny were involved in searching the heathland and wooded areas of Peak Hill just west of Sidmouth. The team stood down at just before 9am when the individual was found safe and well several miles away. This multi-agency search involved ourselves and Beer Coastguard Rescue Team and Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service.
The Team were alerted by South West Ambulance Trust to assist in the evacuation of a casualty from the Dart Valley, however before the Team arrived the ambulance crew had managed to get the casualty to the ambulance and did not need the Team's assistance.
The team were called to Exeter shortly after midnight on Thursday to assist in a search for a vulnerable teenager. A search of 30 high probability areas focussing on urban and parkland regions near the point last seen was coordinated from our mobile control vehicle in the grounds of Exeter police station. We were joined by our sister team North Dartmoor Search and Rescue Team, Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service and resources from Devon and Cornwall police. On completion of the highest priority areas searching was suspended around 6am. The Police investigation continued and with the help of a public appeal, the missing person was found safe and well later on Friday. They were later found substantially outside of our search area.
Callout 23/2023 Throwleigh 18:00 26th September 2023
Callout 22/2023 Haytor 20:30 13th September 2023
Callout 21/2023 Chudleigh 18:00 6th September 2023
Callout 20/2023 Chudleigh 13:00 5th September 2023
Whilst the previous call was underway, we were asked to stand by to assist in a search for a vulnerable elderly person who had missing from the Chudleigh area for the past 3 days. On completing the handover at Newbridge the team moved to Chudleigh and carried out extensive searches of high probability areas close to the home of the missing person. This included the difficult ground in and around Chudleigh Rocks and a number of other rural segments. Our colleagues from the Devon Cave Recue Organisation also searched the caves. We were joined later by our 2 search dogs and their handlers. Our searches were not successful and the team finally stood down at 2130. The Police enquiry remains ongoing. Our thoughts are with the family of the individual at this worrying time.
Callout 16/2023 Three Barrows, Ivybridge 18:30 6th August 2023
The team were contacted approx 6:30pm on Sunday evening to assist with an 'unusual' incident on the moor. A dog had had a encounter with an adder near Redlake, a remote part of the moor north of Ivybridge. The owner, having initially phoned for a vet's advice suspecting a bite attack, then correctly called the Police for Mountain Rescue assistance. Three of our team members in a suitably equipped 4x4 vehicle, were able to swiftly respond and safely transport the pair back to Ivybridge, where the grateful owner picked up his car and took Olive (pictured) for treatment. We wish the poorly lass a speedy recovery aided by, we're quite sure, a few well-deserved treats.
The team were called in the early hours of Sunday morning (2nd July) in relation to an ongoing search for a missing person in East Devon. Both of our team search dogs along with 2 from other local teams, their handlers and navigators, were deployed alongside Devon and Cornwall Police officers as part of the search effort for several hours on Sunday afternoon.
Further searches in East Devon were made by the team’s two search dogs and their handlers for several hours in the evening. They were stood down after they completed their areas.
At 23:49 the team were called out to assist in a multi-agency search for a vulnerable 74 year-old female in the Sidmouth area. 11 of our volunteers and 2 Mountain Rescue Search Dogs were involved in searching the high probability areas. At 04:00 the team were stood down for the night with our sister team North Dartmoor Search and Rescue being brought in to continue searching on Sunday.
Devon and Cornwall Police contacted the rescue team to ask for assistance in looking for a missing person in the Shipley bridge area of southern Dartmoor. At 16:45 the team were called out and 22 of our volunteers and 2 Mountain Rescue Search Dogs were deployed. At 18:30 the invidivual was found by the Police and the team was stood down.
The Team were alerted to search for an elderly gentleman with dementia who had left his home in Higher Ashton at lunchtime and had not returned. As the Team gathered, D&C Police collected sightings of him on a road leaving the village. Fortunately the DSRTA search dog teams were on Dartmoor for a SARDA training weekend, so we were joined by 3 other search dogs from across the country and the 5 dog teams were tasked to search likely areas along the road. As further foot teams were being formed the gentleman was found by one of the dog teams in the corner of a field. Luckily he had only sustained minor injuries, and could walk back to the road escorted by a team member, and was picked up by Land Rover and returned to his family who were anxiously waiting. After a quick medical check with a Team medic, he returned home with his family.
Our thanks to the Great Barn for use of their car park, and residents of Higher Ashton who laid on refreshments at the village hall.
While on duty providing rescue cover for the annual Ten Tors event, the duty search manager was alerted by D&C Police to a missing vulnerable female near Harbertonford. Team members were diverted from their deployment on Dartmoor and were travelling to Harbertonford when Police reported that the person had been spotted and the team returned to Ten Tors duty at 12:45.
Steve Pope and Nick Knight from Mid-Devon Advertiser attended one of our training exercises this month, and produced this short video report.
At approximately 20:00hrs, the team were contacted by Devon & Cornwall Police to assist with the search of a high-risk missing person in a woodland area in the hills north of Sidmouth. Initially two search dog teams were deployed with our remaining volunteers held on standby. One of the dog teams then located the body of the missing person. Our deepest condolences are with the family and friends of the missing person.
At 1420 the rescue team were asked by Devon & Cornwall Police to assist in the a search for a 15 year old with learning difficulties and other medical issues who was lost in the Haldon Forest Park south west of Exeter. The police were concerned for his welfare as he had been missing for several hours in the woods, the temperature was dropping, it was foggy and it had also been raining heavily since the morning. One of our search dogs, their handler and a navigator were deployed and other members were preparing to deploy when the individual was found. On assessment by our Casualty Carers he was found to be cold and wet but otherwise unharmed.
At 14:51hrs the team were asked for assistance by the South West Ambulance Service Trust for a 49 year old lady hill walker who had a suspected broken ankle. She and her friend had been walking on the southern side of Dartmoor beneath Ugborough Beacon when she slipped and sustained her injury. Our volunteers were quickly at the scene where she was assessed, provided with pain relief and packaged for a 1 Km stretcher evacuation to the road head. We wish her a speedy recovery.
Callout 6/2023 - Dart Valley, Newbridge 17:22 19th March 2023
Second callout in 24 hours!
At 17:22hrs the team were deployed to locate and assist a mother and her two teenage children who had become lost then unable to move on the steep ground on the north side of the river Dart upstream from Newbridge. As the light was fading, the party of three were located approximately 100m above the path on a steep and difficult wooded slope. They were made safe and fortunately had no injuries. As darkness fell, a technical rope system was then built which enabled each member of the party to be lowered safely to the path below. The party of three were then escorted along the path to a waiting team Landover and taken to the road head. We’d like to thank 40 of our volunteers who gave up their Mother’s day commitments to respond to this call.
At 0025hrs the rescue team were contacted by the Devon & Cornwall Police to assist in the search for a vulnerable female in woods north of Exeter. Initial areas were cleared by our search dogs and as the team was ready to deploy the individual was found safe and well by Police officers outside of our search area.
Last Wednesday we presented 'red jackets' to 2 more trainees who had completed their training with the Team, and now become full Team members.
Congratulations to Simon Reed and Steve Webb in joining the Team.
Assistance was requested from SW Ambulance Service (SWAST) to a runner who was reported collapsed on Hameldown, near Widecombe. While the Team were assembling, the runner was located and assisted down to the waiting ambulance by one of the Team doctors who happened to be in the area. The Team were stood down at 12:08.
Last night after a joint search exercise with DSRT Tavistock, the first of our 4 trainees who started in 2021 was welcomed as a full team member and received his red MREW jacket. Tim had been working through his training logbook for 18 months, and completed a challenging 'all night' assessment last month. We hope that the other 3 trainees will soon follow suit, and the team can focus on the development of the 4 trainees from 2022 intake.
An elderly lady was reported missing from her care home in Newton Abbot, but as the team were loading the vehicles to deploy, she was located by D&C Police and returned to the care home.
Our two search dogs Amber and Binnie were deployed on their first call out yesterday.
With their handlers, Paula and Chris, they were two of five dog teams from the South West to pass three days of challenging assessment in five mountain areas in the Lake District recently, after years of demanding training.
It has been more than twenty years since we last had search dogs in our team, due to the commitment required to train a dog to such high standards.
These air-scenting dogs can cover difficult terrain quickly and detect human scent over very long distances, saving time and, ultimately, lives.
4 of the 5 newly qualified search dogs in the region featured on BBC Spotlight recently - here's a video of the report
On Thursday 27th Oct at approximately 11:00hrs, the duty SM, was contacted by D&C Police to assist in the search for a female seen going into the water at the Quay in Exeter. The team was deployed at about 11:30hrs, and stood down shortly after as the body of a female was recovered by Police divers. Six members of the team who made it to the Quay were able to assist the Police with cordoning off areas of interest and assisted SWAST in setting up a tent so identification could be carried out. Our thoughts are with the family of the young lady at this tragic moment in their lives.
Callout 37/2022 - Haytor Quarry 18:45 13th October 2022
Callout 35/2022 - Exeter 15:44 18th September 2022
Callout 34/2022 - Haldon Forest 23:43 14th September 2022
Shortly before midnight the team were contacted by Devon & Cornwall police to help search for a male who was reported missing in Haldon Forest. As the team arrived at Haldon Forest the man was located by police and the team stood down.
The team were alerted by Devon & Cornwall police to search for an 82 year old gentleman missing from his home in Kingsbridge. However shortly after the alert, police located the missing person and the team were stood down.
Callout 32/2022 - Becky Falls, Manaton 14:28 29th August 2022
On Bank Holiday Monday, 29th August the team were called to assist SWAST, to recover a female walker who had fallen whilst out walking near Becky Falls and sustained injuries to both legs. Paramedics were at the scene and several members who were in the area arrived ahead of the main team and assisted with the carry off. Twenty two members were able to respond and those not at the scene or on route were stood down. We wish the injured lady a speedy recovery.
Just before midnight on Saturday 27th Aug, DSRT Ashburton were called to assist in the search for a high risk male in the Marldon area of Torquay. Team members arrived at about 01:00hrs and searched until 03:00hrs. Unfortunately the missing person was not located and Police enquiries continue. The team stood down and set off home for a well deserved rest, having been out less than 24hrs earlier looking for a vulnerable female in Ashburton. Fortunately she was found and handed over to the Police.
Callout 30/2022 - Ashburton 04:00 27th August 2022
The team were alerted to search for a 71 year old female who had left her house in the early hours. Several areas along her likely route to Buckfastleigh were searched, until the lady was located near Buckfastleigh at around 07:30 and returned home by police.
On Wednesday 24th Aug, DSRT Ashburton were called by Devon & Cornwall Police, to assist in the search for a missing vulnerable 71yrs old female on the outskirts of Kingsbridge. 13 members of our team along with a Mountain Rescue Search dog team from DSRT Tavistock and several members of our sister team from Plymouth, attended. Members started to search designated areas just before midday, then in the early afternoon the search dog team found the missper, unfortunately deceased. Our thoughts are with the family at this tragic time.
The Team were alerted to help search for a missing 10 year old child, however within 5 minutes of the alert the child was found safe and well by the police.
Callout 27/2022 - Bickington 00:30 18th August 2022
The Team were alerted to search for a missing vunerable male near Bickington, however he was located by police while the team were mobilising for the third callout in 3 nights.
The team were called to assist in the search for a high risk missing person in the Baker's Park area, however while on route to the incident the person was located by the police helicopter which directed local police resources.
Late evening on Monday 15th Aug, DSRT Ashburton were contacted by D&C Police to assist in the search for a missing vulnerable male in the Exminster area of Exeter. 14 members were able to assist and searched large wooded areas on the outskirts of Exminster. The search continued into the early morning standing down at about 01:30hrs. We were unable to locate the individual and the Police search was scaled back and may be resumed.
Late afternoon on Wednesday 10th Aug, the team were called to attend and search an area of woodland above Sidmouth, searching for a vulnerable missing female. At about 21:30hrs after an extensive search of a defined area we stood down as light was fading. Unfortunately, the following day a body of a female fitting the description of the miss per, was found in an outcrop of rocks just off the seafront of Sidmouth. Our thoughts are with the family and friends at this sad time.
The Team were called to assist in the search for an elderly female with dementia, but were stood down while en-route when she was found by a member of the public.
Callout 22/2022 - Teign Valley 21:10 27th July 2022
On the evening of 27-07-22 the team were called to search woodland in the Teign valley for a person reported to be missing and vulnerable. 26 team members attended and searched for just short of 5 hours. We stood down for the night at this point.
The following day a deceased person was located and further searches were suspended.
Our thoughts are with the missing person’s family and friends.
At approximately 02:10hrs, the duty SM, was contacted by D&C Police, to search for a 72yrs old female with dementia, poor eyesight and reduced mobility. The full team was called out at about 02:40hrs. Open areas on the edge of Teignmouth seafront and paths close to the railway line were searched. Once these areas had been done, teams were then brought into search the streets and alleyways, close to the misper's home. Several members had to leave and the remainder were split into 5 teams of two, enabling us to cover large areas of streets along the seafront. It was whilst streets were being ticked off, a call came in saying the misper had been located not far from her home. It transpires that she somehow got into a house and it was only when the occupant was woken by teams trying to open doors, that he came down to see what was going on and found the lady sitting on his sofa. A good end to the day.
Callout 19/2022 - New Bridge 04:00 30th June 2022
Just after 04:00 the rescue team received a request from D&C Police to assist in a search for a woman reported missing, and her car had been located at New Bridge near Poundsgate.
Teams were dispatched to search the banks of river Dart and other likely areas while the police made further enquiries. Once the police had confirmed she was definitely at the location using CCTV, assistance was requested from Plymouth and Tavistock DSRT teams and also the Fire Service. Further extensive searches were carried out until late in the afternoon.
The search was planned to continue on Friday 1st July, however the lady was located by police in the Haytor area early that morning and the team was stood down.
At approximately 1600 hrs on Thursday Devon and Cornwall Police contacted the rescue team with a request for us to provide assistance to a South West Ambulance Service Trust (SWAST) ambulance crew in bringing an injured patient along a difficult to access footpath in the Dart valley approximately 1 mile south of Dartmeet. An initial team of our volunteers with a stretcher were dispatched from their rendezvous point at Dartmeet to the injured person's location and within 5 minutes they encountered the ambulance crew and their injured patient walking back along the path towards them. The patient, a 70 year old lady, had fallen from slippery rocks and had sustained a painful leg injury, but after medical intervention by the ambulance crew she was found to be fit enough to walk with assistance back towards Dartmeet.
Callout 16/2022 - Saddle Tor 15:00 11th June 2022
Whilst assisting D&C Police on a training course for police search managers, an incident was called regarding a member of the public had suffered a dislocated knee on Saddle Tor. Police exercise was stopped and all teams assisted with recovery. This became a joint recovery of PenMaCRA members assisting the recovery of the casualty, who was eventually handed over to the ambulance service.
Callout 15/2022 - Dr Blackall's Drive 16:20 22nd May 2022
The team were called at 18:58 on 21st April to assist with the search for a high risk missing female with dementia. As the Search Manager was arranging drivers the team were stood down at 19:02 as the missing lady was found by Devon & Cornwall Police.
Callout 10/2022 - Clyst St Mary 14:29 6th April 2022
The duty SM was contacted by D&C Police at approx 21:10 last Thursday evening, requesting team assistance towards a high risk missing person search in the Torquay area. Having agreed with the LPSM a targeted area search, the team deployed to seven open ground and wooded area sectors within 1km of the home address. The team stood down around 01:00 having completed these, with no further action pending further information.
The team were contacted by Devon and Cornwall Police at just before 6pm on Monday evening and asked if they would assist the Coastguard in the search for a 29 year old high-risk missing male in the Meadfoot/Ansteys cove area of Torquay. Just as the team were arriving at the scene the missing person was found by the police and the team were stood down.
The team were called at 2235 to assist with the search for a high risk missing woman on Woodbury Common. Team members deployed and searched until approximately 0400.
At 0602 on 26-2-22 a second callout was sent for members to continue the search alongside DSRT Okehampton.
The team were stood down at 0852 as the misper had been found and was in the care of medics
At approximately 21-30hrs on Friday 11th Feb, DSRT Ashburton were called to give assistance to our sister teams DSRT Plymouth & Tavistock, who were involved in a large area search near Bickleigh Bridge on the edge of Dartmoor, looking for a vulnerable high risk missing person. Twelve members responded to this call, who were tasked to search areas near Cadover Bridge. They searched the area until well into the early hours of Saturday morning, unfortunately, without success. Team members eventually got home about 04:00hrs.
At 07-45hrs on Saturday more team members volunteered to continue the search along with Plymouth and Tavistock. Fresh members assisted this second phase, again in the area of Cadover Bridge and going up to the Dewerstone Rocks. At approximately 14:00hrs, we suspended our search area, whilst Plymouth & Tavistock continued in the area of Bickleigh Bridge. Thanks to all who assisted in this search and our thoughts are with the family of the missing person.
A total of 21 team members attended the incident on Friday and Saturday.
Standby - 13:15 Dartmeet 7th Novemmber 2021
The Team were alerted by Police that an 'SOS' message had been received from a party member near Dartmeet. Further investigations by Police and Search Managers identified that the call was a hoax, and that all members of the group concerned were safe and accounted for.
The Team's Swift Water Technicians were requested by Police to attend the site of a callout from March to assist following additional information from a member of the public..
The team was contacted by the Police at 0740 to request assistance with an ongoing search for a missing person thought to be in the area around Lopwell Dam. This would be the continuation of an overnight search involving DSRTs Plymouth and Tavistock.
We had a turnout of 25 members and were joined by a SARDA dog and handler, which allowed us to field 5 search parties including one dog team. These hill parties searched some difficult, steep, wooded terrain on both sides of the River Tavy, alongside numerous colleagues from DSFRS, HMCG, RNLI and the Police. We were supported by the Fire Service welfare pod and the brilliant Rapid Relief Team who provided magnificent burgers, with all the trimmings, for lunch. During the search it became apparent that there were mineshafts in the area, so we requested and were grateful for the support of DCRO to investigate these. After completing 24 search areas, between the 5 search parties, a handover was planned. DSRT Plymouth and East Cornwall SRT provided a further 2 hill parties, as the majority of our members left for a well earned rest, however DSRT Ashburton continued to provide the search management function. At about 1850 we were advised that the missing person had been located in a residential property
Standby - 10:18 Torquay 24th September 2021
The Search manager was alerted to a potential search required in the Torquay area, however at this time there is insufficient information to identify viable search areas.
At 11:52 team were stood down as Police had managed to make contact with the missing person and could establish their location.
The team were called at 1816 to assist in the search for a despondent female walking the moor near to Ugborough Beacon. Whilst en route the team were stood down at 1849 as the missing person was located and with police officers.
The Team were alerted at 17:31 to locate a missing person near Torbay Hospital, but stood down while members were en-route at 17:50 as the person was located by police.
The team were put on standby at 1151 to assist SWAST with a casualty evacuation in the area of Chinkwell Tor. The team were stood down at 1201 as no assistance was required from us