On Sunday evening (July 30), Longtown Mountain Rescue Team were alerted by Gwent Police to an incident near Llanthony Priory.

A gentleman on a walking holiday with family near the area had taken a slip and suffered a serious leg injury. 

With the weather not looking very good the team were unable to request assistance from local Coastguard Helicopter, leading the team members to carry the injured man down in a 4hr operation across steep and rough terrain to the road.

The gentleman was then handed over to the excellent Welsh Ambulance Services NHS Trust crew for further care and transport to hospital.

Last week the team had been called out for five other search and rescue operations. 

Figures show that in this month alone, Longtown volunteers have given over 400hrs to assist members of the public as well as the hundreds of hours training, maintaining equipment and the general running of the team.

Marc Ashton, Deputy Team Leader, Longtown MRT said: “Given the large amounts of recent rainfall many paths in the mountains are muddy and slippery. We always advise that when going out that the correct footwear is important. This group were very well prepared and did the right thing by calling 999 and asking for the Police and then Mountain Rescue.

“We have heard that the casualty should be released from hospital shortly to continue recovery.

“We wish all out casualties over the past 10 days a swift recovery.”

People can find a summary of Longtown MRT callouts on the website, where they provide information where available whilst always protecting the identity of the people they assist. This can be accessed here.