The headwall of Helvellyn

Rescuers were involved in a search of England’s third highest mountain after reports of shouts for help yesterday.

Two handlers and dogs from the Search and Rescue Dogs Association joined 14 members of the Patterdale Mountain Rescue Team in a search of Helvellyn’s two edges and its headwall after a military group alerted police to shouts in the Red Tarn area. The party told police the shouts suggested the walkers were in danger.

A spokesperson for the Patterdale team said: “A search was organised covering Striding and Swirral Edge and the area around Red Tarn and below the headwall of Helvellyn without finding or hearing anything.

“After these areas had been covered two SARDA search dogs were deployed on the headwall area of Helvellyn. At the same time three walkers were being interviewed by a team member and it became apparent that they had been split up on Striding Edge just prior to ascending onto the summit and had been shouting very loudly to each other for some time.”

The search failed to find any walkers in distress and there had been no reports of anyone missing on the mountain.

The spokesperson said: “From timings the three people, from Bolton, were likely to have been the source of the callout.”