A WOMAN was airlifted to hospital by helicopter after a serious fall while out walking.

The woman, aged 22, suffered multiple serious injuries in the incident yesterday afternoon.

Bolton Mountain Rescue Team (BMRT) were the first emergency crew to arrive at the scene shortly after 2pm.

Eighteen BMRT members attended the incident at Jubilee Tower, known locally as Darwen Tower.

Chris Greenhalgh, deputy team leader, said: "We were called to reports of a woman who had fallen and sustained numerous injuries.

"We assessed the woman. She was in quite a lot of pain and was very cold. We realised it could worsen the injuries if we attempted to move her and therefore called for a helicopter evacuation.

"We administered pain relief.

"We helped the two paramedics to transfer the woman to the helicopter and she was taken to hospital."

Mr Greenhalgh has issued safety advice following the incident, urging members of the public to wear warm clothing when out walking on the hills.

He said: "Even though it looks sunny, the wind chill means it can actually get very cold. From a safety point of view, please ensure you take the correct clothing and wear plenty of layers and good footwear when out walking in this weather."

BMRT remained in attendance for just under two hours. The team is run by volunteers and relies heavily on support from the public to finance their search and rescue service.