Three cars stranded in Dalby Forest due to treacherous snow as drivers ignored warnings

Scarborough and Ryedale Mountain Rescue Team said the people in three stranded cars, which they had to get safely back on the road, put themselves, six of the rescue team and the driver of a snow plough at risk by ignoring the dangerous weather.

The team posted on social media that they had been called out at 3.58pm on Friday by police to three people whose car was stuck in 10 inches of snow in Dalby Forest.

The trio had alerted emergency services after having to abandon their vehicle on the hill descending the forest toll road from Adderstone towards Staindale.

With no mobile phone coverage and despite not being appropriately dressed for the severe weather, they had to walk to the nearest house to call for help.

When volunteers from the mountain rescue team arrived, they found the vehicle stuck and the battery flat, and towed it to a parking area.

The trio were taken to safety in the team's minibus.

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While driving into Dalby Forest, the rescuers came across two more stranded vehicles which also needed to be helped back to the main road.

The team posted: "While 'exercise locally' during the lockdown is not well defined, we would question the logic of non-residents of Dalby Forest driving into a snow-bound forest, probably past a road closed sign, when such conditions were well forecast beforehand and when Dalby Forest - Forestry England had stated the road was closed.

"While the occupants of the three cars are now safe they, through their actions, put themselves, six of our team members, four of whom were returning from an earlier incident, and the driver of a snow plough at risk.

"Please stay at home, protect the NHS, save lives."

The rescue team were also called out on Friday afternoon by Ryedale Local Resilience Forum to collect sandbags from the council depot in Malton and deliver them to two homes at risk of flooding in Rosedale Abbey village.

And yesterday afternoon, at 3.21pm, volunteers were deployed to the Esk Valley above Sleights to help a man who had fallen and sustained a suspected hip injury.

Paramedics were with the man but could not get him to an ambulance because of snow and ice on the road.

The team secured him in a stretcher and carried him to the waiting ambulance.