The National Lottery Community Fund has recently granted the North Dartmoor Search and Rescue Team (NDSART) with £10,000 to cover the cost of new kit for team members.

The team members have to train and go out on incidents in all weathers and day or night, often when the weather is at its worst. Walking out in the dark and the driving rain, the volunteers need to be able to survive for hours and hours, searching for those lost, injured or despondent.

In such adverse conditions the equipment they wear needs to be robust to allow for hacking their way through bogs, heather and gorse in the driving rain and wind. Over eight years ago, the team raised the funds to purchase a set of waterproofs for each team member. Whilst this kit has provided good value for money, it’s now starting to fail, putting members at risk. The aim is now to purchase a set of similar robust waterproofs for all current and trainee members, an investment which means the team having to raise an additional £10,000 to match the lottery grant to ensure they can stay warm and dry in the years to come.