Pensioner rescued by coastguard after falling into bog in Unst

Rescuers were called out last night to find a pensioner who got lost in the dark while walking with his dog on the hill at Hermaness in Unst.

The 67-year-old man, who has recently moved to the island, was cold and wet after he strayed from the nature reserve’s duckboard path, became disorientated and fell in a bog.

He alerted the police on his mobile phone shortly after 9.30pm and was able to use his camera flash to show his position when the Coastguard helicopter and Baltasound coastguard rescue team appeared. The helicopter found him and his nine-year-old Labrador using its infra-red heat-seeking equipment.

The rescue team got to the man just after 10.50pm and escorted him back off the hill. He did not require medical treatment despite having been out for about four hours, having set off from his home at about 7.30pm. The rescue teams completed the task by 11.30pm.