CNN Survival Story

There is nothing I can say, just read it:

http://www.cnn.com/2003/US/Central/05/02/climber.amputation.ap/index.html

Matt

I guess Greg beats me to it. That's what I get for not refreshing my screen.

Matt

I'll bet that boulder weighed a lot more than two hundred pounds. Really an incredible event.

Yeah, I think even the wimpiest among us could have summoned the strength to move 200 pounds in that situation. Either way, the guy's obviously a survivor and deserves a hand (bad pun intended).

Ed

"Using his pocketknife, he amputated his arm below the elbow and applied a tourniquet and administered first aid. "

So I'm a little curious as to what kind of pocketknife he used for the amputation. This is an extreme example, but it does show how important the basic survival tools are.

I think it would be almost impossible to saw through bone (especially your own) with a SAK, even the big one with the rip saw. But it did say "below the elbow" so - if I had to guess - I'd suggest maybe the bone was already broken clean through and all he had to do was cut through the soft tissues.

I also suspect he may have applied the tourniquet *before* starting the amputation, not afterwards as the article stated. Otherwise, he would probably have died from loss of blood while trying to perform the amputation.

He seems to have made some poor decisions prior to the accident - why did his employer and co-workers wait four days to report him missing, for example? If you're hiking alone, this is an excellent example of why you should leave a "flight plan" with someone who's reliable enough to realise "empty desk = maybe we should call him and see if he's okay". But tbh, if one of my co-workers didn't show up on Monday, I might equally well assume he/she had phoned in sick or decided to take a couple of days off.

"He seems to have made some poor decisions prior to the accident - why did his employer and co-workers wait four days to report him missing, for example? "

This delay also bothered me, reading this story. Especially, as the SAR find him the same day they were alerted.
Leaving a "flight plan" may have save his arm (may be not ...).


Alain

Yes, here's a story that says it was an 800 pound boulder. That makes a little more sense.

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/2174116/detail.html

And I just read a story on Netscape news that said it was a 1,000 pounder. Do I have 1,500 pounds, 1,500 pounds anyone, now 2,000, 2,000 pounds, going for 3,000 pounds, come on ladies and gentlemen, a mere 3,000 pounds ...

3,000!!! (or, 1.5 Rosannes) And not a pound more. <img src="images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Also, applying a tourniquet to the limb, in cutting off circulation, will cause a lessening of sensation to the affected area, making it easier(!?) to hack off one's own limb. I didn't see the story, but whenever possible you sever the limb through a joint, eliminating the need for a bone saw.

Peanut

Maybe it was a really, really, really UGLY boulder <img src="images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

You guys are quite sick, which is part of why I appreciate you all so much. I actually don't see this man as a great survival example. Going out alone carries certain responsibilities with it. I would like to think that one of us would have either a: never had the accident, or b: would have been rescued the first day because of detailed flight plan information, emergency radios, signal mirrors, or maybe shooting the dang boulder to smitherines (not likely, but I would have taken some type of vengeance out on it if possible). Any more alternative scenarios you all can think of? Regards, Keys

All kidding aside, I would say that the flight plan would have been the best approach. Even a note left on the dashboard of the car is better than nothing. Also, if you are involved in an outdoor activity that involves more than hiking and camping it is probably a good idea to bring a buddy or two.

Chris

Yes, maybe that was it. I say this incident requires the coining of a new phrase. Instead of 'Coyote Ugly' - where your date is soooo ugly that you would rather chew off your own arm in order not to dusturb her (or him) during the movie - how about 'Survival Ugly' - where your date is sooo large that you would rather use your SAK and....... <img src="images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

Any place where boulders can fly in out of nowhere and hit you is no place I would willingly go. I think I'd rather take a stroll in a mall. Crowded and noisy, yes; ambulatory boulders, no.

Hmmm. . . not defending some obvious poor decisions that he made, but an article did state that this was a one day planned event, and he ran out of water three days later. At least he had 3 days worth with him. Still, I have to wonder about not having a detailed flight plan and or other communications gear. For most folks that only venture in these types of areas, I can understand not having a satellite phone, but to knowlingly and wllfully keep going through these areas, I would have expected him to have a satellite phone. He has after all climbed many of the 14k peaks in the area. That said, it is entirely possible that given his particular location (canyon type area?) that even a sat. phone might not have acquired a good signal.

Regards,
Comanche7

I've just acquired a 16 volume set of small booklets by Mors Kochanski. SURVIVAL KIT IDEAS has a very appropriate paragraph " There is a paradox concerning people who get themselves into trouble. It takes one type of person to get into trouble and a different type to get out of it.The person who prepares rarely finds the opportunity to exercise his skills. The person that gets into trouble, likely doing so out of ignorance, is often confronted with problems that tax a well trained person.The best way to deal with a problem is to be knowledgeable enough to avoid it in the first place. This is the lightest kit there is-knowing what you are doing. Of course there are problems over which you may have little control because they are not your fault, outside of you being at the wrong place at the wrong time."

I read a more recent story today; it seems his co-workers reported him missing first thing Tuesday morning and searchers had been looking for him for three days; this contradicts the initial story that "the search had only started that morning". Also, according to the later story, he was a bit of a maverick, so it may be that he had previous history of taking the day off without phoning in. That's just speculation on my part of course, but it appears his co-workers were reasonably prompt in notifying the authorities and the original story got it wrong. (That so rarely happens, of course <img src="images/graemlins/wink.gif" alt="" /> )

Peter Garrison, who writes many of the "Aftermath" columns in Flying, once talked about the "armchair quarterback" aspect of what he was doing; it's a lot easier to spot the mistakes someone else made when you're sitting in your living room, than to avoid making those mistakes when you're surrounded by clouds and ice is building up on your wings; nevertheless, he said, it's an exercise that any good pilot should do, because the time to recognize the mistakes is before you make them.

From what I've read, an awful lot of what the press labels "Miraculous Survival Stories" are just some unprepared dimwit who did everything wrong and managed to pull through anyway. (There was a story some years ago about a famous athlete - baseball player, I think - who got lost snowmobiling with his buds and "survived" by eating snow. The papers made it out like this was a brilliant survival technique and most lesser mortals would never have survived this ordeal; I hope I don't have to point out that eating snow is about as stupid as sneaking up on a grizzly bear, and just about as fatal.)

Like Chris (and Mors Kochanski) I never cease to marvel at the paradox, that the more you know about this stuff, the less likely you are to need it.

Still, I may have been premature in suggesting he made obvious mistakes and I don't think one should entirely discount this guy's abilities. Yes, it's risky to go climbing on one's lonesome, but some people like the solitude and are prepared to accept the added risk. He took three days worth of water for a one day hike, so he wasn't totally unprepared. None of the newspapers said anything about whether he had a PLB, but I suppose it's possible that he simply couldn't get a signal out (he was in a narrow canyon, apparently).

No, it was not a survival example at all. It was a will to live example. This guy broke all the rules of safety and backup. His behavior was so unpredictable that his job didn't worry about him being in or not (at least not for the first few days). But up for discussion is what sort of equipment would have saved him. Also would removing of the boulder after some time made any difference? Would the hand still have to be amputated? Again it's easy to talk after the fact but a lot of fundamental safety precautions were ingnored by him. Also he might have been prepared for everything except a 1000 lbs rock falling on his hand.

Matt