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Becky recalls: “All I remember is a loud bang and a flash of light. I managed to get out of the tent and lots of people came running to help us. They were pouring water on both of us and clearing the crowd for the Red Cross.”
Rapid response
First aid volunteer Anne Eadie was one of the first on the scene after the accident. She said: “When we got there, people had already started getting water and we encouraged them to keep bringing it – even the kids were collecting bottles of water. Luckily, we also carry special water gel pads, which are used to cool burns and stop them getting worse.”
Becky added: “The Red Cross were really good at helping us and put a mask on our faces to cool us down. The doctors told us if people hadn’t put water on us and the Red Cross hadn’t got there so quickly with the masks, then the burns would have been a lot worse.”
After cooling the pair down, Anne rushed them to the on-site Red Cross field hospital where air and road ambulances had been called. She recalled: “We were using so much water to keep them cool the place was like a swimming pool. We just wanted to keep them stabilised until the air ambulance crew arrived.”
‘Brilliant’ volunteers
Stan remembered: “I was amazed at how quickly the Red Cross reached us. It felt like a matter of minutes from sitting outside the tent after the accident to being airlifted to hospital.
“The first aid volunteers were brilliant – we wouldn’t have survived without them. I’ve never had to use the Red Cross before but you always see them at the festivals. I didn’t realise they were so professional – I’m sure we wouldn’t be here if it wasn’t for them.”
Becky agreed: “The Red Cross people were really great and made us both feel really calm. I think I was in total shock, but they kept talking to us and being really nice. It was probably more frightening for our friends, as they had watched the whole thing and I wasn’t really aware of what was happening.”
Both Becky and Stan are now both out of hospital and recovering well. Of the 126 people treated at the Red Cross field hospital at this year’s Belladrum festival, just six were taken to Raigmore Hospital in Inverness. This figure would have risen to about 70 per cent without the presence of the Red Cross field hospital and its dedicated team of volunteers.
Fire and emergency support service
Volunteer for the fire and emergency support service
Fire prevention and safety | 
