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| SAS marcher 'ran to finish test within time limit' | SAS marcher 'ran to finish test within time limit' |
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| An SAS candidate collapsed within a few hundred metres of a main road close to the finish line of a 16-mile test march after he ran to try to make the required time in searing heat, an inquest has heard. | An SAS candidate collapsed within a few hundred metres of a main road close to the finish line of a 16-mile test march after he ran to try to make the required time in searing heat, an inquest has heard. |
| A colleague described how Corp James Dunsby, one of three men who suffered fatal heat illness during the exercise, hurried down from a peak in the Brecon Beacons, south Wales, saying he could finish in time. | |
| Identified by the cipher, 4Y, the candidate said: “After we went over Pen-y-Fan he [Dunsby] ran on ahead saying he could make the time. I said to him: ‘I’m sorry, I can’t. I can’t go at that pace.’ That is the last time I saw him. I saw his Bergen [his rucksack] bounce down the track.” | Identified by the cipher, 4Y, the candidate said: “After we went over Pen-y-Fan he [Dunsby] ran on ahead saying he could make the time. I said to him: ‘I’m sorry, I can’t. I can’t go at that pace.’ That is the last time I saw him. I saw his Bergen [his rucksack] bounce down the track.” |
| Dunsby, 31, who served alongside Prince Harry in Afghanistan, covered an estimated 2km in 20 minutes but collapsed just before the road and the final checkpoint. | Dunsby, 31, who served alongside Prince Harry in Afghanistan, covered an estimated 2km in 20 minutes but collapsed just before the road and the final checkpoint. |
| Describing their condition as they climbed Pen-y-Fan, 4Y said: “We were both quite worn down. We were both in that mindset to get up that hill.” He added: “We were all incredibly fit.” | Describing their condition as they climbed Pen-y-Fan, 4Y said: “We were both quite worn down. We were both in that mindset to get up that hill.” He added: “We were all incredibly fit.” |
| Three army reservists – Lance Corp Craig Roberts, 24, Lance Corp Edward Maher, 31, and Dunsby – died after suffering hyperthermia as temperatures reached 27C (80.6F) during the test in July 2013. At least seven more reservists suffered heat injuries. | |
| The men’s inquest in Solihull, West Midlands, has heard claims that the march was not called off despite the heat because a cancellation would have generated too much paperwork. Candidates have given vivid accounts of running out of water, collapsing in the heat and having to be helped by civilians. | The men’s inquest in Solihull, West Midlands, has heard claims that the march was not called off despite the heat because a cancellation would have generated too much paperwork. Candidates have given vivid accounts of running out of water, collapsing in the heat and having to be helped by civilians. |
| Asked by the coroner, Louise Hunt, if at the time he felt he had had adequate preparation for a test march in such hot weather, 4Y replied: “I didn’t think about it. I trusted the judgment of those above me.” Asked if he felt the same now, he replied simply: “No.” | Asked by the coroner, Louise Hunt, if at the time he felt he had had adequate preparation for a test march in such hot weather, 4Y replied: “I didn’t think about it. I trusted the judgment of those above me.” Asked if he felt the same now, he replied simply: “No.” |
| The inquest continues. | The inquest continues. |