Derbyshire 4×4 volunteers have been busy rescuing stranded vehicles and aiding emergency services during the recent heavy snowfall.
Derbyshire: The volunteer team, Derbyshire 4×4, has been super busy lately. After that heavy snow and rain over the weekend, they’ve been out rescuing emergency responders and helping stranded vehicles all over the county.
In just a few days, they’ve tackled over 50 incidents, which is a record for this three-year-old group. They do all sorts of things, like getting nurses to rural patients and helping emergency services reach places that are tough to access.
Since the snow hit, these 4×4 responders have been working late into the night, checking roads in the Peak District for anyone stuck and clearing paths for police and the East Midlands Ambulance Service.
Some towns, like Buxton, were completely snowed in, making it impossible for anyone without the right gear to get around. That’s where Derbyshire 4×4 stepped in to lend a hand.
Sam Vincent, 31, who’s a trustee and secretary of the group, shared, “It’s been pretty mad. We just hit over 50 incidents this morning. We’ve done a ton of work with police and rescue vehicles, especially around Buxton, which has been nearly impossible to navigate for days.”
He added, “We checked the passes in The Peaks when the snow was really coming down, and we knew we’d have a busy morning. Most of our work has been getting NHS staff to and from their jobs or helping patients who need daily treatments like kidney dialysis.”
This volunteer group, which started three years ago, is made up of folks with 4×4 rescue vehicles and some experience in responding to emergencies. Sam mentioned he was helping with an incident until 2:30 AM over the weekend because the snow caused a lot of trouble in northern Derbyshire.
He continued, “There was a lot of media coverage advising people to avoid unnecessary travel, and folks have been pretty good about it this time. Our operation has gone really smoothly, and we’re pleased with how things have turned out.”
“This is probably the busiest we’ve been, but we haven’t helped the most people at once, as we had a bigger operation during the flooding in previous years.”
Derbyshire 4×4 even posted a video on their Facebook page, warning drivers about how quickly road conditions can change in Derbyshire, going from clear to completely unserviceable, leaving unsuspecting motorists stuck in rural areas.
