Search and rescue says thanks for generosity

THE ORGANISERS of this year's emergency services day at Eden gathered to present money raised to Cornwall Search and Rescue.

Chairman of the charity which was chosen by the 999 Cornwall committee, Tim Hughes, was delighted with the result.

He said: "A lot of hard work went into organising this event and I would like to pay special thanks to Sergeant John Capp, who invests so much time.

"The money will be put towards a new, special Land Rover for rescues, which can be opened out to take a stretcher and can be taken to the top of Row Tor. We were delighted to have been chosen as this year's charity and we accepted a cheque for £1,500."

Last year, Cornwall Search and Rescue carried out 62 rescues – one third involving locating missing elderly people, often with dementia, and also missing children and then other incidents like people being stranded on cliff tops or dogs down mine shafts.

The charity has 35 volunteers who give up, on average, 130 hours of their time to rescues and training each year.

This year's Cornwall 999 day in June saw many stalls.

Mr Capp said: "It was a good feeling to hand over the cheque and we were able to give Cornwall Search and Rescue more from the raffle on Saturday night too.

"Saturday was a way to bring everyone involved together – it was a good networking experience, which then helps teamwork in real life emergency situations.

"The Cornwall 999 day in June was a real success and it's getting bigger every year. Next year our chosen charities will be Cornwall Air Ambulance and FLEET – which kits out ambulances with emergency equipment."

A DVD produced by Cornwall Volunteers, who sold programmes on the day and supported the event, was shown on Saturday.

Copies can be purchased from Mr Capp at St Blazey police station on 01726 812262.