Two walkers have been located safely after failing to return to a pick up point in west Donegal.
The incident happened on Tuesday last, with Donegal Mountain Rescue tasked by Gardai to respond to the pair who were overdue on their return from the hills.
They had set off from Glenveagh, travelling to the Old Church at Dunlewy and were late arriving at their pre-arranged pickup point.
When the person collecting them realised they were not back by the time they had intended, they called 999 to report the late walkers.
Donegal Mountain Rescue subsequently set in motion a full team callout due to the deteriorating weather over the mountains and a severe drop in temperature in their last known location.
Using Sarcall and with phone coverage, they were able to locate the two walkers. DMRT requested the Coast Guard helicopter and Rescue 118 was placed on standby.
The team were able to follow the walkers progress as they made their way toward the valley floor. While this was ongoing, DMRT sent a hasty team along the valley floor to meet the two walkers.
As the two walkers entered the Poison Glen Valley, the team was able to make visual contact using the torch on their mobile phone and were able to direct the hasty team to meet them. A while later, the two walkers were reunited with the person picking them up.
In a statement Donegal Mountain Rescue say that this was an excellent decision on behalf of the person collecting the walkers to call emergency services, staying on location until they arrived and supplying the information they needed.
