An island mountain rescue team was called out to two emergency rescues on Saturday night, in “atrocious” conditions.
Volunteers from Skye Mountain Resue Team (MRT) were asked to assist in two 999 calls from tourists who were caught up in terrible weather conditions which left them disorientated while they were out walking in the mountains.
The first 12-hour-long rescue saw the team assist in the search for a Spanish man who had become separated from his group on Blà Bheinn, also known as Blaven.
The second call-out was to help two tourists visiting the area who required a rescue on the Trotternish Ridge.
A spokesman for Skye MRT said: “It was a wild all-nighter for Skye MRT with two concurrent rescues to deal with.
“Number one was an arduous 12-hour search in atrocious conditions involving 15 MRT personnel who were searching for a Spanish man who had become separated from his companions on Blaven earlier in the day.
“Number two involved four MRT personnel who had to rescue two German nationals from the Trotternish Ridge, also in terrible conditions.
“Had it not been for the use of the Sarcall PhoneFind tool and the expert knowledge of our team, the outcome of number one may have been very different.”
Sarcall is a smartphone app that sends a text message with a link to a web page. Clicking on the link then opens a page in the phone’s browser which asks the phone to identify its location as a coordinate, which is then used by the MRT to find the person.
The MRT call handler can then see the caller’s location displayed on a digital OS map display.
The spokesman added: “Thanks to the crew of the Coastguard Helicopter Rescue 948 who, despite being unable to extract the casualty because of the extreme conditions, provided much-needed encouragement by its attendance.
“A special thanks must also go to volunteers Ally and Kirsty Watt for their excellent support.”