I have always felt safe climbing with Ben. I trust him and he trusts me. It helps that he has been a paramedic for over 5 years now. He always keeps a medic bag in the car in case of accidents, which I have complained about taking up too much space on trips. He is extremely good at what he does and knows how to act in extreme situations.
We made a day trip to Red River Gorge on Friday and climbed at the Motherlode, a cliff known for having high routes, some topping out at 130 feet. After warming up, we headed over to put the quickdraws up on a mini project we had started working on. Upon finishing the route, Ben quickly lowered me and let me know that he thought a climber had fallen near the Madness Cave area and he was going to check it out.
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| The Motherlode at Red River Gorge |
I untied from the rope, grabbed the keys in case the medic bag was needed and followed behind him. I hadn't heard anything. Since I was up on the route and focused, I was unsure about what we would find.
When I finally reached the area, I saw a familiar face. An experienced climber within the Red community was laying on the ground, conscious, but in pain with climbers surrounding him. The climber had been lowering from a long climb and was lowered off the end up of his rope into a steep ravine. By the looks of the rope on the belayer's end (towards the rock), it appeared the climber had fallen somewhere between 30-40 feet, but the actual distance was unknown. The local EMS crew had already been called via a climber's cell phone and they were on their way. Ben assessed the situation, and sent me along with two others running down the trail to get the medic bag from the car. Upon receiving the bag, Ben was able to wrap a broken wrist and help keep the patient comfortable. He did further assessments and determined there had been no loss of pulse, motor or sensory in his legs, a tool to check for spinal injury. Also, no abnormal findings in his pupils when shined with a light, checking for a head injury. There was tenderness in the back but not on the spine, and the climber was having no trouble breathing which lessened the chance of tension pneumothorax.
When the EMS crew arrived, they brought a backboard and a litter which would be used to carry the climber out on the steep trail back to the ambulance. Once ready, 8-10 climbers, Fire and EMS came together and carried the patient, packaged in the litter back down the trail. The path was slick and narrow, but we took turns, switching in and out to get the patient down safely. Once we reached the bottom, 4 members from the Fire and EMS department got into the small creek so we could safely transport the patient over the narrow bridge to the parking area where the ambulance was located. The patient was safely in the ambulance and the climbers stayed to make sure no more help was needed.
After the ambulance left, we all stood in the parking lot, first debriefing about what had just happened, and then breaking into more personal conversations, getting to know one another better. It was incredible to see the way that 8 climbers from all over the country came together to help out one of their own in a critical situation. Each person brought something different to the table: some having big wall experience, making a haul system to help get the patient out of the ravine, fast runners to get supplies quickly from the car to make the patient more comfortable, everyones strong arms to carry the patient down from the crag, and Ben's skills as a paramedic allowed him to control the scene until the local crews arrived. Ben and I got to know most of the climbers well throughout the day and I don't think we could have asked for a better group to help out. We even enjoyed dinner at the Rockhouse with two of them later that evening, one of which went on to send his first 13a Hoofmaker later that day. Congrats Tim!
Reflecting back on this situation, I have so much respect for my husband and am so proud of him for what he does. I have seen him work on multiple medical mission trips and he works full time as a firefighter/paramedic, but to see him in action out at the crag was indescribable. He was patient, calm, and knew exactly what needed to be done. He checked to be sure nothing serious was happening on the inside of the patient, not just what appeared on the outside. Also, he is one of the most humble people I know and wouldn't take credit for anything that happened. He denied doing anything more than the rest of the 8 climbers who had helped.
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| Ben working at a near fatal car accident in 2010 |
Accidents can happen, regardless of your climbing ability, and they can be fatal. We were very lucky to have such a great group and crew that helped out with this situation and can only hope that climbers will continue to step up when their fellow climber is in need. Things can happen when you least expect them, so be safe. No matter how many times you may have climbed a route or been to the area. Please be cautious, be sure to double check yourselves before going up a route and always knot both sides of your rope. Be friendly to the climbers around you, they could be the ones coming to your rescue. We are a community of people who share a common passion, rock climbing. Let's be a community who helps each other without a second thought, especially during those times of deepest need. And, I will never complain about the medic bag taking up too much room again!
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