At 10:42 this morning the team were contacted by Lancashire Constabulary to request assistance with a search in the Duxbury Park area of Chorley. Chorley is covered by our neighbouring team, Bowland Pennine Mountain Rescue Team, so the call was passed on to them.

Police were becoming increasingly concerned for the safety for a missing 16 year old gentleman who had been missing since early morning.

The Police Search Manager in charge had recently attended the Lancashire Search Managers course, where some of the Mountain Rescue personnel on the search had been delegates or had presented on the course.

Due to the potential large search area, Bowland Pennine requested the assistance from Bolton and North East Wales Search & Rescue Team, and requested assistance from search dogs, including Boris and Handler Steve Nelson and navigator Elaine Gilliland from our team. Joining Steve and Elaine were dog handlers from the Isle of Man who were over training with Steve & Elaine.

All search parties congregated at 13:30, taking over Duxbury Golf Course car park.

Bolton Team were deployed to search woodland surrounding a nearby saw mills.

Shortly after commencing the search the good news came through saying the boy had been found in the Merseyside area.

12 Bolton team members attended this this search, all under the command of Bowland Pennine Team Leaders, with our Deputy Team Leader, Chris Greenhalgh, shadowing the control operations.