The only Lake District mountain rescue team without a permanent base has launched a final fundraising push for a new HQ as it recorded its busiest year on record.
It is around £150,000 short to build a new base and is asking for people to help.
Duddon and Furness Mountain Rescue Team currently operates out of unheated rented space.
For the last few years, members and supporters have been raising funds for a permanent and modern base.
So far, they have raised £775,000 and has land secured, plus planning permission – but rising costs since before the COVID-19 pandemic have left a shortfall of £150,000.
The team, which covers the area from Ravenglass in an arc to Cartmel, has seen 64 full callouts to date this year against an average a few years ago of 25.
Fifty per cent of its normal full team call outs sees members work jointly with neighbour, Wasdale Mountain Rescue Team, the busiest team in the Lake District this year.
There have been another 17 calls for assistance where the team has been put on standby, sometimes for several hours, or limited action has been required.
The average number of full team callouts has risen in more recent years to about 40 per year. The weekend of December 3 and 4 saw 10 callouts in response to the major snowfall that affected South Cumbria.
Martin Cooper, the team fundraising officer, said: “The planned base will be a gamechanger in terms of our ability to support the local community by enhancing our operational capability, including the ability to host multi-agency incidents, and to host youth training events.
“Our very presence as a free search and rescue service enables outdoor organisations and the general public to venture onto the hills with the assurance that should things go wrong help is at hand.”
To support Duddon and Furness Mountain Rescue Team, visit https://www.dfmrt.org.uk/index.php/support-us
