Last month a woman in her 70s was walking on Dartmoor when she got stuck in mud.  The woman, an experienced walker, had been crossing a small stream and became swamped in the muddy banks.  She called the police, but poor mobile phone reception meant that it took a long time to ascertain the nature of the problem and where she was.  Police obtained mobile phone data showing roughly where the woman was and a helicopter was deployed to locate her. She was found about an hour after the first call, stuck up to her waist in mud. In order to rescue her, police used a ladder, an old door (used to provide a platform) and something to grab on to.  Nearby farmers also helped out, letting the woman shower and change at their home.

20 Saved By Ladders

In China, 16 people lost their lives, but 20 were saved when a factory fire broke out in Wenling, Zhejiang province.   One man in particular is being hailed as a hero after stepping in to stabilise a ladder being used by firefighters to reach people trapped on the third floor.  Locals had been using ladders to help people escape, but they could only reach the second floor.  ‘Ladder Man’ as he has been dubbed, held on to the bottom of a ladder until all five trapped people had escaped and then left before anyone could thank him. There was an example of bravery closer to home: Charley Matthews and Joseph Clarke (14 and 12) tried to save the life of their neighbour, Indira Paget, after she fell from a ladder whilst pruning trees in her driveway.  The children were in their front garden when they saw the 66-year-old fall from her ladder.  They rushed to her aid and sought help, calling 999 and performing CPR on Mrs Paget.  Unfortunately, the extent of the head injuries she sustained meant she did not come round.  Charley and Joseph will receive an award for courage and maturity.

Scottish Ladder Rescue

Fire crews in Scotland rescued a man who had fallen from a ladder, inside his house!  The young Scottish man had been working on a building project at home when the makeshift wooden ladder he had been using to get in and out of the basement gave way.  He fell nine feet into the bottom of the house with the ladder on top of him, and had to be rescued, due to a suspected dislocated wrist and elbow, for which he received hospital treatment. Now for something a little more light-hearted: after the extended Ladder Exchange Scheme last year, the Ladder Association has picked the winner of it’s ‘Idiots on Ladders’ photo competition.  You may think you’ve seen it all, but this year’s winner takes some beating.  Two men are working on a church roof.  It is a modern building, and the roof has a sharp slope, which ends in line with the ground floor windows.  The men are trying to repair something in a corner of the steep roof, and do not have a long enough ladder.  Instead of getting the right equipment, they use two ladders.  One is leant against one side of the corner, footed by one of the men.  The other ladder is leant against the other side of the corner, balanced precariously on the top rung, the angle of the roof being the only thing that is keeping the whole set up vaguely stable.  Let’s hope next year doesn’t see anything more dangerous than this!