The team were called on 29 Dec 2006 to New Waste. We were assisting Ashburton and Tavistock. Two walkers had become lost between Plym Ford and the Redlake Tramway. The search was suspended because of appalling weather conditions. Both were found by helicopter at 04.00 the following morning.

The Team was called to Budleigh Salterton in late Nov 2006 to look for a potential suicidal despondent. This was a woman who had parked her car by the sea and who had, in all probability, walked straight into it. We joined Okehampton in doing a daylight search of areas previously covered overnight by Ashburton. Nothing was found in spite of an extensive search inland well beyond our normal boundary.

Another day time callout on 31 Oct 2006 to Barne Barton to look for a 40 year old despondent, probably suicidal, who had been reported missing on the 28 October. A very thorough search by team members, H.M. Coastguard, Oscar 99, police tag team, MoD Police and dogs turned up nothing. All the signs pointed to the subject having taken his own life probably on the evening of the 28 October. MoD Police took a body out of Stonehouse Creek the following Wednesday morning, believed to be the misper.

The team was called in the afternoon of 18 Oct 2006 to Norsworthy Bridge to look for a 77 year old man who had disappeared on the 16 October. It was thought that he might be at a favourite spot in the Sheepstor area. He wasn’t. On the 29 October the police called us with the news of 4 possible sightings the last of which was between the Dartmoor Inn and Holne. He remains missing in spite of several alleged sightings (update Feb 2007: He body has since been found in the Roborough Rock area).

In the evening of 16 Oct 2006 we were called out, this time to Staddon Heights Golf Club to look for a despondent male who had phoned his wife with the new that he had taken some sleeping pills and drunk a bottle of gin. The search was underway with lots of very welcome input from members who knew the area well. The search dogs were just about to deploy when the police called with the news that his mobile call had been traced to Fort Austin mast so he wasn’t in our search area. He was found the next morning having breakfast at Jennycliffe Café!

We were called out to the Wembury area again after only a few days. This time to look for a man who had been ‘confronted’ by a bull and as a result had gone off his planned walk from Wembury church car park to Heybrook Bay via Down Thomas. He was found in the morning by the harbourmaster in an area well outside where we had previously searched.

We were called to Wembury Woods on Thursday 22 Sep 2006 to look for a 52 year old male who had not been seen since the 9th September when he left his accommodation in West Hoe. He had previously tried to take his own life some 3 weeks previously and is believed to have lived wild in Wembury Woods for 2 days at about that time. The search was called off when it got dark. We have not heard anything about this one since.

In the early hours of 2 Jan 2006 we were tasked to Norsworthy Bridge to look for a 78 year old male who had gone missing between the lane end at Norsworthy and Whiteworks. A police car was tasked to stay with the mispers car in case he appeared which eventually he did, having been found by a passing motorist in the Yelverton area.

Earlier this year the body of Julie Crocker was found in an area previously searched by us. The police were very keen that we should not feel guilty at not having found her and to stress that the find poses more questions than it answers.

We had a callout to Exeter on Boxing day 2005 for a chap who was in the habit of going walkabout and had done so at least 15 times before. The chap turned up in Exmouth at just about the same time that the final team was being debriefed.

Saturday the 10 Dec 2005 was a very wet callout. This was on a foul Saturday night from Gutter Tor with 22 members turning out to search for a walker who was lost. Our control team did a fine job, and he was located within a couple of hours.

Another callout on the afternoon of Thursday the 8 Dec 2005. Our Controller Alasdair was called by our assistant Controller Bruce at about 16.20 and asked to ring a police sergeant with regard to a missing man at Yelverton. When he rang her for the details, she told me that the subject had just been found so our services were no longer required.

Another callout on 5 Nov 2005 was well supported, even though it was late on the Saturday night when we were called. Everyone did a first class job with our controllers being spot on with their search areas, enabling the casualty to be found within a very narrow timeframe.

Callout on 23 Jul 2005.This one was very strange. A despondent who decided to starve himself to death in a tent. Acting on information received, the Police asked us to search ground around Cleve House between Ivybridge and Ermington. The agreed assembly time was 18.00 at the main car park in Ivybridge. The nature of the ground searched made for an interesting evening, and we stood down at 21.30 as the proliferation of badger setts made walking quite hazardous. On the following afternoon the van together with 2 of our team acting as guides, backed up CRG in a search of Kit Hill near Callington. The teams had just been deployed when the Police were told that the subject’s tent had been found in a park in St. Austell. He was later arrested under the mental health act.