Rescuers tackled poor conditions on Cader Idris to rescue a 59-year-old man suffering a seizure.

Aberdyfi Search and Rescue Team were made aware of a walker having seizures at around 2.30pm on Monday, 17 June.

The 59-year-old man, part of a group of seven climbing the mountain, was taken ill a few hundred metres short of the summit of Pen y Gader.

Given the seriousness of his condition, assistance was requested from the Coastguard helicopter R936, but it quickly became clear that the cloud-base was too low for the helicopter to reach the casualty site.

The only option was for mountain rescue volunteers to make their way on foot to the casualty, and to carry him down to a position where the helicopter could then evacuate him.

R936 landed in Dolgellau and picked up a team of rescuers to fly them as close as possible to the casualty site.

Having reached the ill man, rescuers made further assessments which confirmed the seriousness of the situation. The man’s companions, cold and wet, were escorted down from the mountain by team volunteers.

As breaks in the cloud appeared, the helicopter crew inched its way up through the mist and was able to reach the casualty site and land.

The man was quickly loaded aboard before the gaps in the cloud closed again and R936 made a quick exit, getting down safely below the cloud-base before taking the casualty to Ysbyty Gwynedd for further assessment and treatment.

Everyone was safely down off the hill by 9pm, over six hours after the initial call.

Graham O’Hanlon from Aberdyfi Search and Rescue team, said: “We were facing a long, slow and difficult stretcher-carry with a seriously ill casualty, so were very happy to see R936 emerge from the mist.”

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