Donegal Mountain Rescue Team

Blue Stack Challenge ⛰️ A huge well done to everyone who took on the Blue Stack Challenge last weekend! Setting off from Fintown, our team walked alongside and found everyone in flying form.

An event like this takes months of organisation, so a sincere thank you to the organisers for all the hard work behind the scenes, and for the invite to take part. With almost 30km underfoot, this was no weekend stroll and every step went towards some great causes.

We’re glad everyone got home safely at the end of a long day on the hills.

⛰️ Bank holiday Sunday training on Muckish this evening.

The scenario was: walker slips on a rock crossing a stream, suspected fractured ankle, stuck in an awkward spot and can’t walk. Search team deployed, found him, and got him off the hill.

Since this was a simulation, he’s fine. He did, however, spend a portion of his Sunday evening lying in the wet grass by a stream while volunteers prodded his ankle. Dedication comes in many forms.

Thanks to everyone who gave up their evening for it.

If you’re heading out on the hill tomorrow for the bank holiday, go prepared. Let someone know your plans, check the forecast, and bring the right gear. Enjoy it out there ☀️🌦️🌧️

Congratulations to four of our team members who passed their Mountaineering Ireland Mountain Skills Assessment this weekend with Bren Whelan of Donegal Climbing.

It's a two-day test of personal mountain proficiency covering map and compass navigation, steep ground movement, contour interpretation, route planning, mountain hazards, and a night navigation exercise that takes candidates from daylight headtorch in one unbroken push.

The assessment also requires a current and valid First Aid Certificate, and a logbook of mountain experience across a variety of upland areas.

It's not a casual tick-box exercise, it has both written and practical evaluation, and this opens them to apply next for the Mountain Leader award.

We're grateful to Bren for his time, expertise, and for taking this photo!

🚁 Today, Donegal Mountain Rescue Team welcomed the crew of Rescue 118, the Irish Coast Guard search and rescue helicopter based at Sligo for a joint training day, that was as valuable as it was wet!

Rescue 118 recently transitioned to the brand-new Leonardo AW189, replacing the Sikorsky S-92 that many of us had grown familiar with over the years. Today was our opportunity to get properly acquainted with it, learning the aircraft's layout, rescue configuration, and operating procedures from the people who fly and crew her every day.

Training covered two things: winch hoisting: getting team members up into the aircraft safely and efficiently, and the high line: the tether rope used to control rotation and prevent personnel from spinning during the hoist. Both skills are critical to effective mountain rescue operations, and working through them in a live aircraft environment, with Rescue 118's own crew guiding us, is irreplaceable experience.

As for the weather, well. The Sligo crew apparently brought the Atlantic with them. The rain was relentless and barely let up all day. It did make for thoroughly realistic training conditions.

Thanks to everyone who turned out and got stuck in today. And a very special thank you to the four-person crew of Rescue 118 — two pilots and two winchmen — who gave their time and expertise. And thanks also MRSC (Marine Rescue Coordination Centre Malin Head) Malin Head Coast Guard for helping coordinate today.

Equipment Update - We're delighted to share the arrival of a new Starlink satellite internet system for our Incident Control van.

As many will know (especially anyone who's tried to get a signal in the Errigal car park, for example), operating in Donegal's remote areas can mean limited mobile coverage, making on-scene communication tricky.

Starlink will give us a more reliable internet connection in the vehicle, supporting incident management, mapping and communication between teams.

Dependable connectivity is vital for modern search and rescue, and this upgrade will help us respond effectively when needed.

A big thank you to everyone who supports the team and helps us invest in equipment that directly improves our operational capability.

[Library photo from a past event at Errigal]

CALLOUT - Yesterday

At 18:49, Donegal Mountain Rescue Team was tasked by An Garda Síochána regarding a report of a missing person in South Donegal.

The team initiated SARCALL, a technology that sends a text message to the missing person's phone. If the recipient clicks the link, we can pinpoint their location. Unfortunately, the messages were not activated.

While our Callout Coordinator had 10 DMRT members preparing for the search, the team received confirmation from Gardaí that the missing person had been found safe and well, and the team was stood down.

We thank An Garda Síochána and the team members who responded.

🏔️ Ten DMRT team members completed the Rope Rescue 3 Operations Course across two weekends recently. The course follows standards developed by ICAR (the International Commission for Alpine Rescue) a body that draws on research and operational experience from mountain rescue teams around the world. The same training, the same standards, wherever you are in the mountains.

This brings Donegal Mountain Rescue to having one of the largest rope rescue teams in Ireland. Thanks to our trainer Ronan Lenihan for the great time spent in Donegal hills.

Coyle's Centra of Raphoe recently held a fundraiser in their shop. Thanks a million to Edward Coyle for organising and for all who donated. Your donations go to helping fund new equipment and training for our team. Go raibh maith agaibh go léir!

Recently we we're invited to attend mountaineer Simon Yates's talk in An Grainan Theatre, here are the photos! Thanks for saying hello and for all your good wishes and donations. It was a really enjoyable evening.