Beacons mountain rescue face rush

A mountain rescue team has been inundated with emergencies, with a series of call-outs in 72 hours.

The Central Beacons Mountain Rescue Team has found missing people, helped an injured cyclist and even saved a sheep stranded on rocks.

The rescuers' hectic period started last Friday when they were called out to help South Wales Police search for a missing woman near Bridgend.

The team is based in Dowlais and operates in mid and south Wales.

The missing woman was eventually found in the early hours of Friday, but later that day the team was asked to help police with an unusual request to rescue a sheep stuck on rocks above Blaenrhondda in the Rhondda Valley.

On Saturday afternoon, a number of teams, including central beacons, were alerted to two calls - a person who had collapsed in Gospel Pass near Hay-on-Wye in Powys, and a person who had suffered a leg injury at nearby Capel Y Ffin.

The Longtown rescue team eventually dealt with both incidents and was assisted by Brecon Mountain Rescue Team.

Injured cyclist

On Sunday, the central beacons team was alerted by South Wales Police to an injured cyclist in the Afan Argoed Country Park in the Afan Valley.

The rescue team's annual running costs are nearly £30,000 a year, and leaders said the busy period highlighted the need for a separate team to help raise money.

"The last few days' incidents shows perfectly the diversity of the incidents that we respond to - missing people from the communities around us, injured hill walkers and even animals stuck on cliffs," said Huw Jones, team leader.

"The team is trying to recruit a group of people to help with fundraising who don't respond to incidents, taking some of the pressures off existing team members."

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Central Beacons Mountain Rescue Team
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