Unexpected rescue for Littlehampton fundraisers

RNLI members Gavin Simmons, Lee Cullen, Rob Devo and Ben Cumberland were taking on the gruelling Three Peaks Challenge, with friends Tony Day and Jon Street, when the emergency unfolded.

The team of fundraisers were about halfway through their 24-hour quest, and were nearing the summit of their second mountain, Scafell Pike, when they stumbled on a band of eight climbers, lost in the mist and fog of the mountain.

Gavin, 37, of Sussex Street, Littlehampton, said: “It was pitch black with some good rain coming down while we were climbing.

“We were about 100m from the summit when we rescued the climbers.

“They were all in good condition, just a bit despondent that they had lost their way.

“They had been wandering around for about two hours in thick fog and cloud.”

The band of fundraisers led six of the lost climbers to the top of the mountain before guiding them safely back down to the ground.

Gavin added: “It’s pretty normal to save people at sea, but to do it 900m above sea level was something totally different for us all.”

In spite of the slight delay in helping the stranded climbers, the group still managed to scale the UK’s three tallest peaks, which included Snowdon, in Wales, and Ben Nevis, in Scotland, in just over 22 hours.

Their efforts raised £2,400 for Chestnut Tree House children’s hospice, in Poling.