RYEDALE Lions Club has teamed up with a walking group to equip its members with a potential life-saver.

The Lions have donated a Message in a Bottle container to all 100 members of the Ryedale Walking Group to help them receive speedier, effective medical treatment.

The small plastic bottles, carried inside walkers’ rucksacks, store vital personal information about the carrier’s health, regular medicines and emergency contacts. A key fob on the outside of the rucksack alerts emergency services to the presence of the bottle inside.

Colin Humphrey, chairman of the Ryedale Walking Group, said: “Safety is a paramount issue for those out walking in the great outdoors, whether in groups or alone.

“If medical help is needed, this important information will now be readily available, thanks to the Lions to assist mountain rescue and other emergency services when one of our members is taken ill or has an accident while out walking.”

Ryedale Lions Club has also been busy repeating its distribution of bottles at GP surgeries during the current annual flu vaccination sessions in both Pickering and Thornton-le-Dale. The club has now distributed more than 5,000 Message in a Bottle containers locally.

“We know these bottles have played a very important part in helping ambulance crews and medical staff deal much more quickly with emergency situations in the home and carrying them while out walking is also a potential life-saver,” said Lions Club organiser, Roy Foggin.

Anyone interested in obtaining a free Lions’ Message in a Bottle should contact their local GP surgery, dentist or pharmacy.

Trailblazers Outdoors shop in Pickering also has supplies for walkers.