Sailors help injured German mountaineer during AT exercise in the Bavarian Alps

Royal Navy police turned medics when they helped a German climber with a broken thigh in the Bavarian Alps.

The three-strong team were on a day’s mountaineering from the Royal Navy’s unique Navy Outdoor Centre Germany (NOCG), around 70 miles southwest of Munich, when they encountered an injured mountaineer on the upper slopes of the Iseler, a peak which rises more than 6,000 feet close to the Austrian border.

With the casualty exposed more than 5,200ft above sea level and suffering from a suspected broken femur (thigh bone), the police did not hesitate to jump to their aid.

“I can’t even begin to imagine the pain that person would have gone through on that mountain,” said Lieutenant Scott Cantillion of the Royal Navy Police.

“We just did what hopefully any other person would do, ensuring their safety until the mountain rescue team could arrive.”

The police are enjoying a week’s adventurous training delivered by the small, specialist team based at NOCG in the Alpine resort of Bad Hindelang.

It traces its history back nearly two decades. In its current form, it occupies a former four-star hotel and is used year-round as a hub for a mix of Alpine and sporting activities: hiking, climbing, klettersteiging, kayaking in the Alpine streams and more.

The centre runs courses and activities all year round and is available to families at New Year and Easter; the rest of the time it focuses on team/character building for Naval Service personnel through its adventurous training opportunities.

Details can be found at: www.nocg.co.uk