Northern Ireland Mountain Rescue

The history of organised Mountain Rescue teams began on this island in 1962 when The Mourne Mountain Rescue Team was founded. The Kerry Mountain Rescue Team and the An Óige Mountain Rescue Team were later founded in 1966.

The Mourne Mountain Rescue Team is made up entirely of volunteers who live close to the Mournes and are based at the foot of Slieve Donard in the coastal town of Newcastle. Northern Ireland mountain rescue operations which fall under the remit of the Mourne MRT include the areas of the Mourne Mountains, Slieve Croob, Slieve Gullion and the Cooley Peninsula. 

The Team maintains an operational membership of around thirty-five people in order to provide this service. We are a registered charity and totally dependent on donations from the public. It costs around £35,000 per year to maintain the service which must be raised through our own efforts. There are several ways you can support us to achieve this. Your help is vital for us to maintain the rescue service. Please visit our DONATION page for more information.

The numbers of people heading into the mountains for recreational purposes in Ireland has increased significantly over the last few years and so has the need for a professional mountain rescue response. Adequately equipped and trained hillwalkers/climbers will bring the level of risk down, but it will not eliminate the possibility of even the most experienced person having an accident, which requires our assistance.

The Team is made up from people from all backgrounds, Outdoor instructors, teachers, painters, building contractors, police officers, fire fighters, designers, business owners, doctors and nurses. All of our members have one thing in common and that is they all have some form of mountaineering/hillwalking background and they want to give back their time, expertise and support to those in need in the mountains – voluntarily.