‘Use common sense’: warning to walkers in Peak District amid rise in emergency callouts

Visitors to a moorland beauty spot have been told to use their common sense when taking selfies on a narrow tower of dangerous rocks after an increase in emergency callouts.

Rescue services have said more than a quarter of calls are from people getting into trouble while following the “Trinnacle Trail” on Saddleworth Moor in the Peak District, which has become a social media trend.

The three pillars of rocks, known as the Trinnacle, are popular on Instagram and TikTok where hundreds of wannabe influencers have posted images and videos standing on and even jumping between the rocks.

Rescuers said it had become “almost a prerequisite” to pose for a photo or take a video on the rocks and told visitors to use caution when climbing because they could be slippery when wet and extremely exposed in windy weather.

On Sunday evening, Oldham mountain rescue was called out to a group who had got lost. They were found at Middle Edge Moss and some of them were flown to safety by helicopter.

Oldham mountain rescue said in a statement that the number of people tackling the trail has surged. “Whilst we always encourage people to get out and enjoy the great outdoors, it is important that they understand the potential risks that may be encountered, something that the various media outlets often fail to mention.”

They said that parts of the trail were a scramble on hands and feet up rocky steps, which was “not for the faint hearted”.

The group added: “As well as the challenging terrain, even on the brightest of days, the weather in the hills can change in an instant. What may be shorts and T-shirt weather down in the valley can soon become a very different prospect at higher levels on the edge of Saddleworth Moor. Rain, high winds and poor visibility are frequently encountered.”

The rescue of Imran Choudhury, who fell while taking a video for social media in 2021, proved to be one of Yorkshire Air Ambulance’s most challenging. Choudhury spent three weeks in an induced coma after breaking his skull, shoulder, spine and leg in six places falling 200ft from the top of the rocks.

“The aim was to do some video and take some pictures and that would encourage people to donate,” said Choudhury, from Oldham, who was training for Kilimanjaro. He told the BBC: “At the end of the video I said that if somebody were ever to fall from here, that’s the end of the story for them – and the next minute it was me.”