The man went missing when walking near Sutton St Nicholas. Photo: Pauline Eccles CC-BY-SA-2.0

A missing man was found by rescuers after an overnight search.

Longtown Mountain Rescue Team was called out for the seventh time in a week and was joined by colleagues from the Brecon team when the 79-year-old man failed to return from a walk near Sutton St Nicholas near Hereford.

The man, described as vulnerable, was found by a combined Search and Rescue Dogs Association and mountain rescue team at 3.35am. He was taken to Hereford County Hospital by ambulance.

Mike Jones, search manager at Abergavenny-based Longtown MRT, said: “It was a four-hour search and the weather conditions helped as it was such a mild night. We are just thankful the gentleman was found safely.

“The majority of our callouts are to help local people who are missing or injured.”

It has been a busy week for the team which has had seven call outs in seven days.

Mr Jones added: “We are on call 24 hours a day, seven days a week. But even for us this has been an exceptionally busy week.

“All our members are volunteers and most hold down full time jobs and have families. They turn out no matter what the time or weather conditions and I’d like to pay tribute to their dedication.”