Kinder Mountain Rescue Team's £85k funding mission for new vehicle
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2021 marks the group’s 50th anniversary and although the celebrations may have been halted due to the pandemic, the fundraising has not stopped.
The group have set themselves the target of raising £85,000 to replace their aging Land Rover Defenders.
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Mike Potts, press officer for the team said: “Through the amazing and unfailing generosity of the public and, hopefully, larger sponsors, we aim to raise enough money to substantially, or entirely, pay for a replacement vehicle when the time comes."
The Hayfield based team has been called out thousands of times to help people lost and injured on the surrounding hills and moors.
Every call out is time-critical and the team relies significantly on off-road vehicles to reach casualties in the shortest time possible and then transport them safely and rapidly off the hill.
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However, off-road driving takes its toll on the vehicles and the team’s main workhorses, two Land Rover Defenders, are now 21 and 17 years old and are beginning to show their age.
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The self-funded team has launched a significant fundraising campaign to enable the purchase of a new vehicle within the next few years, in the event of critical failure of either of the two Land Rovers.
Mike said: “We have three off-road vehicles, although only two of them are capable of traversing the worst terrain we encounter – these are our much-loved Land Rover Defenders, which are getting very long in the tooth.
"We demand a great deal of our vehicles but they take a real beating on our main off-road route up to Edale Cross. They're getting to the point where we are, all too frequently, paying for repairs.
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"So we're launching a fundraising campaign, with a target of £85,000, to prepare for the day that one of the vehicles needs replacing.
"With the significant cost of a new vehicle, we cannot wait until a vehicle gives up before we try to raise the funds for this.”
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Anyone who would like to sponsor the team should contact [email protected] and anyone who wants to make a donation can do so at https://www.justgiving.com/campaign/kmrt-newvehicle.