THE WIFE of a man who spent more than four hours on the side of a freezing hill near Crickhowell after he fell and broke his ankle, has praised a 16-strong team that rescued him.
Mike Bagshaw, an experienced walker and father-of-two from Abergavenny, was out with his dog in the Cwm Bwch Valley near Llangenny when he was injured after slipping at around 3.30pm last Sunday, February 2.
On a cold and rainy afternoon, Mr Bagshaw lost his footing well into the hike, and found himself in a dangerously tricky predicament at the isolated spot.
Abergavenny-based Longtown Mountain Rescue team located him by using a search and rescue app to send a message to Mr Bagshaw's phone, which he was able to accept and give permission for his position.
With the help of local farmers, a large amount of kit was carried up to Mr Bagshaw and his dog.
Four teams made the 30-minute trip up to him, with 16 rescuers including two dog-handlers contributing to the rescue effort.
Due to the extent of mud on the hill, Mr Bagshaw was placed on a stretcher and slid down the hill via a rope system.
At around 8pm, Mr Bagshaw was taken to Nevill Hall Hospital, Abergavenny, after being reunited with his family.
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Morgan Bagshaw thanked the rescuers for helping her husband, and explained her feelings throughout the incident.
“Before the rescue team had reached him I was really worried because I didn’t know how quickly they’d be able to find him in such a remote place,” she said.
“It got dark and cold quite early on, and the colder it got the more I started to panic, but I didn’t want to worry the children [aged four and six].
“I managed to get through to him on the phone at around 6.30pm and I could hear him shivering while he was snuggled up to the dog.”
Despite being afforded an extended period of leave from work, Mr Bagshaw has returned to work in London this week.
A spokesman for Longtown Mountain Rescue said: “The casualty was in great spirits, did everything right, and we would really like to say thank you to the local farmers for their support.”
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