A selfie saved the day.
When a couple was stranded during their hike on Sunday, it was a selfie and location shared on WhatsApp that helped them get rescued.
An unnamed pair found themselves stuck on a cliff after climbing up a steep bank in the Peak District of Winnatas Pass, located in the English county of Derbyshire. Winnatas Pass is known to have steep valleys with lots of caves, and is even the home to a local ghost story legend. This is not a place in which you would want to get stuck, but luckily, the couple wasn't stranded for long.
The couple, believed to be in their 20s, contacted local mountain rescue services for help. According to Edale Mountain Rescue duty leader and medical officer Steve Rowe, the couple adequately described their location and told the rescuers they had a photo that would give them a better idea of where exactly they were.
"The stuck couple had the presence of mind to send an earlier picture they had taken to the duty leader, as the position they were stuck in could be clearly seen in their earlier selfie," the Edale Mountain Rescue team writes. "This allowed the team to access their position rapidly."
Along with the selfie, the couple also sent a WhatsApp message with a location ping so that the rescuers had their exact location.
Calling it "possibly our first callout via selfie," a team of six rescuers located the couple and successfully brought them back safely using a safety equipment rope system. The formerly stranded couple were uninjured.
Whenever going on a solo exploration or even with another person or group, it's important to tell someone exactly where you are going and for how long you plan on being away. There are even safety apps available, like ICE Contact, which will send a text message with a location, even if the user's phone dies or they lose service in case of danger.
People are often quick to judge when people share too many snaps or selfies of themselves on their hikes or nature walks instead of living in the moment, but using social media apps can actually come in handy if there is an emergency situation.
Source: Facebook
