Episode 6 Countryside 999

From the Highlands of Scotland, to the coast of Cornwall,

the great British countryside is spectacular.

But we work and play in it at our peril.

And when things go wrong,

the emergency services race to the rescue.

This chap is having a heart attack.

We need to get him in quickly.

We've got a cow on the road. Countryside policing at its finest!

Going hundreds of miles against the clock.

Battling the elements, and braving the waves.

From fields and forests to cliffs and country roads,

we'll be right at the heart of the action,

with police fighting crime.

I'm not arguing it. I'm reporting you for it.

Paramedics saving lives. And lifeguards patrolling the seas.

We're there as the emergency services pull together, to pick up,

patch up and protect the public.

This is Countryside 999.

Coming up, from heatwave to monsoon,

extreme summer weather keeps the Royal Navy busy.

We've had weeks of nice weather - why today?

He's just lying down on the job, isn't he?

And, for the RNLI Lifeguards, fish and fingers are all in a day's work.

As I sort of put pressure on the board, I felt a bit of pain

in my finger and I just looked up and, well, bam.

And in Cornwall, paramedics race to save the victim

of an accident black spot.

Are you in any pain anywhere, Martin?

I think it's just the neck.

Summertime in rural Britain.

Blue skies, and calm seas.

But it's not all long, lazy, heat-filled days.

The British summer is notoriously fickle.

Ready for action, whatever the weather,

is the Royal Navy Search and Rescue team

at HMS Gannet in Southwest Scotland.

It's a real scorcher, one of the hottest days of the summer.

Observer Angela Lewis is taking an emergency call.

Thanks, then.

We have a 20-year-old male suffering from heat exhaustion on Ben Lawers.

-On the track?

-Yeah. About a quarter of the way down the grid.

-We're not 100 per cent sure cos it's come in from the police.

-OK.

But it's right on the paths.

The heatstroke victim is 70 miles away on Ben Lawers.

At just under 4,000 feet,

it's the highest mountain in the Southern Highlands,

but not one of Scotland's most treacherous.

All happy? Happy in the back there?

Today's freak heatwave could put a very different spin on things.

Flying conditions are good for the 40-minute journey North.

-Wow, it's warm.

-I know.

Winchman and trainee paramedic H Henson knows just how dangerous overheating can be.

Angela tries to reach the casualty on his mobile.

'Welcome to the messaging service.

'The person you have called is unable to take...'

Gutted!

The crew scour the area for signs of someone in trouble.

But the casualty is nowhere to be seen.

Minutes later, they touch down at the bottom of the hill

to pick up one of the Tayside Mountain Rescue team.

But when paramedic Dave Rigg hops out, he's approached by a couple.

It's the missing walker, and he seems fully recovered.

You're the man himself, are you?

Yeah. We couldn't call you cos we didn't have any phone signal.

Righty-ho.

MRT leader Stuart double checks they've got the right people.

-They the two?

-That's who we're looking for.

OK, no bother. I want you to follow me. I want to have a chat with you.

The search is off,

but maybe next time walker Dave will pack a picnic.

Basically what happened is me and my girlfriend here,

we just decided to walk up Ben Lawers,

and it was just obviously too hot,

and not eating enough, which is obviously the worst thing to do,

but we managed to get another walker to stop and help us,

and they've given us food and water, so thanks to them, anyway.

Later, the Gannet guys are out again,

swapping scorching sun for lashing rain.

From the Scottish Highlands to the Southernmost tip of England.

Cornwall's spectacular coastline stretches for over 400 miles.

Rugged cliffs, sheltered coves and beautiful beaches

make the perfect holiday destination.

Newquay is on the Atlantic coast of the Cornish peninsula.

It's a small town with a population just over 20,000.

But the seaside resort welcomes over a million holidaymakers

and day trippers each year, most of them during the busy summer season.

You can see why.

Fistral Beach is just the ticket for families looking for a bit of fun.

And thrillseekers flocking to the world-renowned waves

of the UK's surf capital.

Everyone's here to enjoy themselves, but on such a busy beach,

someone's bound to get hurt.

It's down to a highly trained team of lifeguards

to keep the beach safe.

And they've got all the gear...

Jet ski rescue water craft.

Guys, you can't be here - red and yellow flags!

Patrol trucks with PA system and rescue boards.

Just to get your attention.

There's a couple of body boarders out there.

Come back in to shallow water.

Make your way to the red and yellow flags, thank you.

And roving quad bikes.

But there's one vital gadget no lifeguard is ever without.

The whistle.

BLOWS WHISTLE

Red and yellow flags, yeah, mate?

Manning the patrol truck is senior lifeguard and Newquay local boy,

Warren Llewellyn.

A former British surf champion,

he understands the dangers first-hand.

Main hazards today, there's a bit of a current going from North to South

off this Northwesterly wind, so we're looking out for people

getting dragged towards the Southern end towards the rocks.

It's quite a big tide, so we're going to need to be on our guard at low tide.

Low tide's the worst for rips,

and the wind is making a few little rip currents today,

so we've got to keep everyone in their own depth

and in the centre of the two red and yellow flags.

Rip currents are bad news,

lurking under the waves.

Even strong swimmers can be dragged out to sea in seconds,

or be smashed against the sharp rocks.

On patrol with Warren,

and bringing a touch of Bondi to the British beach,

is 21-year-old Aussie surfer Jackson Howell.

If you're in the hut the whole time, you have to run down the stairs,

run down the beach, get the board, whereas if you're in the truck,

keeps you right at the water's edge, so you can be right there,

first response - if something happens, you can react immediately.

But the lifeguards would rather prevent accidents from happening in the first place.

One thing that helps

is keeping surfers and swimmers separate in the water.

Jackson's about to go out and do some patrolling on the rescue board.

There's a few body boarders getting dragged out

a bit too far for comfort.

He's just going to go and make sure they stay in the right spot,

and don't go out too far.

Despite their vigilance, accidents will happen.

In 2012, the lifeguards on Fistral dealt with almost 400 incidents.

This year, they're as busy as ever.

Surfing accounts for a fifth of the injuries they see.

17-year-old Liam has had a battle with his board.

It's clear who's come off worse.

Cool thing for the day.

He's dislocated the middle finger of his left hand.

But Liam's taking it all in his stride.

We've just come down to town for the day.

We were going to go body boarding, but we accidentally paid for surfing

so we thought we'd go surfing.

I went through the wave, and went to stand up on it,

as I put pressure on the board, I felt pain in my finger.

I looked up and, bam, I just saw this.

I looked at it for a second, and then just shouted, "Ahhhh!"

It stings quite a bit, but there's no pain if you touch it.

I'm a rugby player, I've had worse.

He'll need to get that finger to the local Minor Injuries Unit

for an X-ray and the joint will need to be snapped back into place.

Ouch.

We'd been doing this for about 20 minutes,

and then it was just sort of a slip, I guess.

At least you got 20 minutes.

Yeah!

I think his reaction to the injury wasn't too normal

because he seemed totally fine.

He wasn't even in any sort of pain.

I think a lot of people would be in a lot more pain than that -

even looking at it makes you a bit squeamish!

I guess I'm quite lucky I've still got all of it there,

it's just...an odd shape.

Yeah, they're going to need to bend that back...

somehow!

-They might give you some pain relief for that!

-Hopefully.

Liam has to make his own way to hospital.

But first, he hitches a lift back to his mates on the beach.

Right, let's do this.

Later in the programme, one unlucky swimmer gets a painful surprise.

Did someone get a weever fish?

-It hurts.

-Did you step on something spiky?

-Yes.

Oh, you got "weevered."

350 miles North in Ayrshire,

the Royal Navy Rescue Team from HMS Gannet are keeping busy.

When they're not on an emergency, they're honing their skills.

Winchman Dave Rigg's back in the Sea King for today's training exercise.

This time, he's joined by co-pilot Jon Green,

pilot Mark Rose, and observer Rob Suckling.

They're flying though

some of Scotland's most wild and breathtaking scenery,

but they're not here to enjoy the view.

The weather's taken a turn for the worse.

A call has just come in through the Stornoway Coastguard.

Someone's come off a quad bike in a remote spot 34 miles away.

They ditch the training, and immediately head North.

Rescue 177, we are now airborne, en route to Tarbet.

Echo Tango Alpha on scene is 1400 local.

Do you have any update on the casualty, over?

This is Kinloss Rescue, we'll get that information to you shortly.

The crew head from their current location in Glencoe

to an isolated spot near Tarbet,

just south of the Knoydart Peninsula on the West Coast.

The helicopter has to fly low through the glen to avoid the worsening weather.

Rescue 177, this is Kinloss Rescue.

Party of five.

If it looks like a hip fracture,

they'll need to take the casualty to a specialist unit in Glasgow.

It's four times further than Fort William,

an uncomfortable journey for someone in pain.

As they get close, the crew prepare to land.

Good line. Five...

Three. Take it down slowly.

Clear the tail.

That's it now, tail's down.

Five yards...

-Got the big rock visual?

-Yeah, got the big rock visual.

Further left, ten o'clock. Four yards.

You've got about six inches. There.

The rain's lashing down and the wind is sweeping across the hillside.

But they've found the casualty, fencing contractor Hughie.

He was out working on his quad bike,

which is now at the bottom of a steep slope.

Later, Hughie lies soaked to the skin on an exposed hillside.

Paramedic Dave isn't only concerned about his hip.

It doesn't take long before hypothermia can set in,

even in summertime.

Coming up...

In Newquay, there's danger lurking under the waves.

It hurts.

Ugly little critter, and painful.

The Royal Navy must get Hughie off the hillside.

Ready, set, roll.

But first, on a country road in Cornwall,

an Air Ambulance paramedic deals with a motorbike crash.

You've had a fairly nasty bump, and you've got a cut on your head.

Britain's rural roads give access to the countryside

for millions of motorists all year round.

Throw in some summer sun, and these usually quiet highways and byways

are soon heaving with holiday traffic.

And the only way to beat the congestion is to take to the skies.

Mark Fuszard is a paramedic,

and one of Cornwall Air Ambulance's highly skilled rescue team.

We're just treating you for a kind of worst-case scenario.

ETA approximately two minutes, over.

But reaching a patient doesn't always involve a helicopter.

If he can get there quicker on wheels, then that's what he'll do.

And that's the story today.

Mark's had an emergency call-out to a nasty road accident

less than a minute from base.

For speed, he's ditched the rest of the team and the chopper.

Go ahead, Nick.

INDISTINCT RADIO CHATTER

Roger. That makes sense. It's pretty much just down the road.

I'll update you as soon as I can

but if you could get someone running just to relieve me. Over.

SIREN WAILS

A car and a motorbike have crashed at a notorious junction

between Bodmin and Newquay.

This is a busy main road into Newquay.

There's a few twisty bits

and I think this road is in one of the top three roads in Cornwall

that's had the most accidents.

And it's got quite a high death rate on this road.

-RADIO:

-'About seven minutes away.'

Yeah, roger that. Just coming up to it now.

Motorbike accidents on country roads

are a major concern for the emergency services.

Bikers account for just 1 per cent of traffic

but about 20 per cent of all fatalities.

OK, let's see what we've got.

Biker Martin may be in a critical condition.

Neck and spine damage are Mark's biggest worry.

Right...

He gets help from a passing off-duty doctor.

Basically, I need you to kneel down there.

Mind yourself on that piece of plastic.

We're going to keep this chap's head nice and still.

If you want to get in a fairly comfortable position,

you'll be there for a little while.

Are you in any pain anywhere, Martin?

I think it's just the neck.

It's like my shoulders are twisted round.

Martin, I'm going to have to cut your leathers off, mate.

They're coming off whether you like it or not.

You've had a pretty much...

You've had a fairly nasty bump.

You've got a cut on your head.

Can't guarantee you haven't done any damage to your neck.

So I'm going to keep you in this position

and take you to hospital in this position, strapped down.

Mark needs to check Martin's vital signs.

All too often, a casualty's condition can deteriorate rapidly.

It's known as talk and die syndrome.

Even though the crash victim seems fine,

there can be a fatal hidden head injury.

Nice and steady with your breathing.

Even wearing a helmet,

Martin's taken a real battering.

Later, Martin's dad and his dad's girlfriend arrive on scene

after getting the phone call every parent dreads.

Complaining of a pain in his neck.

Absolutely, yeah.

Back on Fistral Beach, just a few miles away,

the surf's up, and the sun's out.

The six-strong lifeguard team remain ever-vigilant.

With so many people in the sea,

watching the waves for signs of somebody in trouble

is a never-ending job.

Up in the lifeguard unit, Phil constantly scans the beach.

My duties as a lifeguard are to make sure that the public are safe,

always keeping an eye on the water,

making sure the bathers and swimmers are safe.

But there's one danger that can't be seen.

It lurks under the surface, burying itself in the sand,

waiting for unsuspecting feet...

The weever fish.

It's got a mouth like that,

so it looks a bit sad, looks like a bit of a grimace

and it's got some spikes on the top,

maybe one, two, three black spikes.

Yeah, ugly little critter, and painful.

We get quite a lot, probably five a day on average, something like that,

and the stings vary from mild to really painful.

Jackson and Jen are on patrol in the truck,

when they spot someone limping out of the water.

Oh!

-Someone got "weevered."

-Oh, no!

Did someone get a weever fish?

Did you step on something spiky?

-Yes.

-You got "weevered!"

-You stood on a weever fish.

-Go to the top, they'll give you some hot water.

-It hurts.

They think it's a weever fish or something.

Mate, just to let you know, got a girl coming up with a weever fish.

There's no truck ride to the lifeguard station for sting victim Kemi!

Jack and Jen need to stay on patrol at the water's edge.

-Hi.

-How are you doing, guys? All right?

See you on the other side.

Take a seat.

-What, there?

-Yeah.

Just put your foot in the water.

Let's have a look.

It's like, right in my little toe,

I think. Well, that's where it hurts.

I don't know if it's a cut or if it's a weever.

Right, it all looks good.

-You're not allergic to anything, are you?

-No, no.

-Whereabouts, which toe?

-Literally in the crack of the little...

-Right.

I don't know what it is but it really hurts.

Yeah, it looks like a little weever you've got there.

It's a weever!

Nothing to worry about.

Just put your foot back in there.

We'll get you some hot water just to give you a bit of pain relief.

-Thank you.

-Hopefully after about 20 minutes, half an hour,

-all the pain should be gone.

-There's nothing in there, is there?

No, there's no spike in there at all

but what the weevers do, they just inject a bit of poison.

-OK.

-And your body gets rid of that after 20 minutes, half an hour.

-OK.

How are you feeling at the moment?

I'm feeling fine, my foot just really hurts, that's all.

-Does it?

-I'm completely fine now.

You'll just get a bit of pain in your foot

-but the hot water will just give you some relief.

-OK.

Hot water, best treatment for weever fish. It just relieves the pain

but it's down to the body system to get rid of the poison.

There's a reason why my mum made me wear beach shoes when I was younger.

Kind of wish I'd brought some now.

Oh, well, these things happen, I suppose.

20 minutes later, holidaymaker Kemi is more or less pain-free.

I got here, we've been travelling since 8.30 last night

and then got to the beach because our campsite isn't open

so a few of us decided to go down into the sea.

And it was great, like, the waves were really big and stuff

and literally just as we were about to leave

I just had a really sharp, horrible feeling in my foot.

And as soon as I started hobbling out of the water,

the RNLI came zooming over saying that I'd been stung by a weever

and to come up here and put some hot water on it

and I've put some on it now and it's fine.

Be a bit bruised but yeah, I think it's fine.

And the lesson here? Mum always knows best!

On a hillside on the West coast of Scotland, it's chucking down.

Easy, and steady.

Five yards.

-Big rock visual.

-Yeah, I've got the big rock visual.

Forward left, ten o'clock.

You've got about six inches, right there.

Atrocious conditions aren't helping the Royal Navy's rescue efforts.

They've found casualty Hughie,

who was out fixing fences in this rugged landscape.

Unable to move, he was lucky to get a phone signal to raise the alarm.

A group of walkers, two shepherds,

their dogs and a workmate have since shown up.

In the downpour and with the noise of the helicopter,

they shout to make themselves heard.

Right, OK.

He is complaining of pain, that's all. Just in that area, there. Um...

Any pain at all as I come up your leg? Anything at all? No?

Hughie is up for a bit of banter.

But he has already been lying on this exposed hillside

in the rain for 35 minutes.

Not pleasant.

He was laying on the, at this point,

soaking wet ground with that heavy rain

and the chill that was in the air.

It doesn't take long before hypothermia can set in.

Even in summer time.

You guys happy to help us?

Right, if somebody could just stay at the feet end,

so that when we move Hughie onto the mat...

It is quite slippy, I don't want him to go that way. All right?

So your job is to stop him sliding down the hill

stop the whole thing going down the hill! OK?

So, if at any stage you get a little pain, just let us know. OK?

Ready, set, roll.

It's a tricky manoeuvre.

And soggy work.

It's too wet to check the extent of his injuries out here on the hill so

he's being immobilised on a vacuum mattress ready to be stretchered.

What we are going to do now, put you in the back of the aircraft, have

a look at you where it's a bit drier. A bit noisier, but it will be drier.

Luckily, there is plenty of manpower on hand.

Without the extra help, the Royal Navy crew would need to

power down the helicopter and roll up their sleeves.

Ready, set, lift.

And ready, down.

It's a fight against the elements, tough terrain

and a very powerful downdraught from the helicopter.

From a quad bike accident in the hills,

to a motorbike smash on a country road.

Air ambulance paramedic Mark Fuszard has raced to

the scene of a road traffic accident in Cornwall.

Biker Martin is alert,

but it's not clear how badly injured he is.

You can remember everything that happened, Martin?

Yeah, I came down off Spitfire Corner there, saw the traffic

so I slowed down anyway because they all tend to pull out.

Saw the guy - I got so close to him and then suddenly it was there.

I think I was probably hugging that white line on the right-hand side

trying to get out and I must have hit his quarter panel, I think.

OK, mate. You can remember hitting the road but not being knocked out?

I don't remember hitting the road.

I remember hitting the car, or I remember a big hard hit.

Do you know if you were knocked out at all?

I don't think so... I think I was back on here

and it was like, that hurt.

A short loss of consciousness can be deceptive.

Concussion can lead to serious brain trauma.

Martin's dad, Ivan, has rushed to the scene

having received the call every parent dreads.

-How's your arm feeling, all right?

-My shoulder, the top of the shoulder...

-Just there somewhere.

-Put your finger on it, if you would?

Yes.

Mark's dad's girlfriend, Karen, is with him.

-He is going to need to go to hospital.

-Yes.

I'm concerned about his neck.

He's complaining of pain in his neck.

It's everybody's worst nightmare to come across something like this.

Absolutely, yeah.

They're worried about him.

But Martin's anxious about something else.

-How's the bike?

-A mess.

-Oh, no.

-That's a

-BLEEP

-bummer, that is.

No, what!!

-Dad, you can't do that to me.

-How long have you had it?

-Year and a half.

-I told him he weren't having one.

-I only just cleaned it.

-That'll be why it looks shiny new.

Off-duty doctor Mark witnessed the crash

and has been lending a hand.

Basically a car pulled out in front of me.

Slowing down because the junction is quite notorious for accidents anyway

and he's caught the back door of the car as the guy's pulled out.

And he's gone over the handlebars,

flipped over the car and landed where he was, so...

I think he has moved. He did take his own helmet off, unfortunately.

Have you got any pain in your pelvis at all, Martin?

-Can I just have a little...?

-Yeah, you carry on.

The only pain I've got is in my right shoulder blade at the back.

-Any pains at all when I'm touching you?

-No, I've got no pains in the bottom half.

Basically because this chap's come off his bike

and somersaulted, landed in the road,

we're going to protect his pelvis by putting a belt on,

protecting his neck by putting a collar on

and then we're going to immobilise him by putting him on the scoop.

Are we all good to go?

Ready, set, roll.

We're just going to pull a few bits out.

Any new pain anywhere when we rolled?

-Just the back of the shoulder.

-Just uncomfortable

at the back of the right shoulder. OK, fine.

Ready, set, lower.

With Martin immobilised,

Mark can hand over to the road ambulance crew.

They'll rush him to the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro

20 miles away, for urgent specialist care.

Luckily, his helmet's saved him a big injury to his head.

Cos even that has collapsed and he's got a laceration to his forehead.

We need to get him to hospital to get his neck X-rayed. He's going

to need some stitches on the laceration to his forehead.

But apart from that, all his observations are stable.

His heart rate is stable, his respiratory rate is stable

and his blood pressure's all good, so he's just a lucky boy.

The same can't be said for his bike.

Dad Ivan, also a biker, thinks his son's biking days might be over.

I think he might decide that himself,

but I might have to give it up as well.

We shall see.

It looks like Martin's injuries aren't serious

but it could have been a very different story.

There's a lot of things that could have happened.

The bike could have hit him,

he could have hit an oncoming car, but he's been very, very lucky.

And due to the fact that he is not that badly injured and

he can get into hospital by road fairly quickly,

it's just better all round to take him in by land ambulance.

And we're available now to see anybody who might be really poorly.

Back on the West coast of Scotland, fence builder Hughie might have

broken his hip after he parted company with his quad bike.

What we'll do, we'll move on "ready, set, roll." OK?

In monsoon conditions, the Search and Rescue crew is on the scene.

OK, if at any stage you get a lot of pain, you need to let us know.

OK? Ready, set, roll.

It was a team of workmen who were building a fence

and they were using the quad bikes to carry all their equipment.

Unfortunately, the casualty had gone up on quite a steep bank,

misjudged how steep it actually was and the quad bike rolled over.

Fortunately, he jumped off quickly before he actually went

the whole way down with the quad bike.

In this weather, Hughie's lucky that help reached him so quickly.

There was a significant downpour so we had to get the casualty

stabilised and then carried him over to the aircraft.

Once out of the elements and into the dry cab,

Hughie can be checked out properly.

Broken bones will need specialist care in Glasgow,

otherwise he can go to Belford Hospital in Fort William.

OK. Ready? I'll take your medical advice, fellas, in the back,

but obviously it's a lot quicker to Belford.

-But it's up to you two, you make the call.

-Robin's just having a look now.

It's painful, but Hughie can move his legs.

The verdict - serious bruising rather than broken bones.

All right, mate, Belford we're happy with.

-Going for Belford, are you?

-Yeah.

-I'll tell Kinloss.

No obvious injuries - probably just heavy bruising or something.

They're saving 40 minutes by avoiding going to Glasgow.

But even on the shorter journey,

the vibrations of the Sea King will hurt.

Time for some pain relief.

You're all right at the moment. OK.

These people who work outdoors in this kind of weather,

they're quite a tough breed and they probably

don't like admitting that they are properly in pain.

Just 15 minutes after leaving the hill, they're

coming into land at Torlundy.

Belford Hospital is just a few minutes further by road.

He will have to retrieve his quad bike at some point.

But Hughie's day could have ended very differently.

Luck's definitely been on his side today,

and he's grateful to the Gannet lads.

There is no doubt mobiles help.

But it's the people on the end of the line who save the day, ready

to respond to emergency calls around the clock, whatever the weather.

It's all go for Britain's rural emergency services.

Fencer Hughie has made a good recovery.

He's riding his quad bike again, and has finished that fencing job.

Biker Martin needed seven stitches above his eyebrow. Otherwise

he escaped with severe bruising rather than breaks.

And he's back out on the road.

Surfer Liam was fortunate not to have fractured his finger.

Hopefully, he's dealt a better hand next time he takes to the waves.

It's all happening in the countryside.