Dear Editor:
I thought I would drop you a note and tell you about an adventure that happened on Friday, July 9, 2010.
On this day I had the pleasure of spending the day with three of my grandchildren, a family friend, and two dogs. I decided we would have an adventure and hike up to Godey Creek Falls. The weather was perfect and it would stay cool where we were going.
We parked above the information centre in the old gravel pit and walked and slid our way down a 100-foot hillside to Godey Creek. We wandered along the trail and crossed the creek several times enjoying the scenery and sounds of the ravine bottom.
The kids, ages twelve, eight, and two four-year-old twins were having a blast walking in the creek and dunking their heads to cool off, or just because they could.
The dogs were back and forth exploring and lying around in the creek cooling off. What a perfect day!
We were explorers looking for the old prospector’s cabin and his old claim. We were adventurers looking for Godey Creek Falls. This would be a place to rest, relax, and nourish ourselves before going on for more adventures.....
Well, things took a turn for the worse in a split second. I now know what that means—we were having fun at the falls. Socks, shoes, and T-shirts were off, the kids were wading in the pond at the bottom of the falls and the dogs had huge smiles on their faces. What a perfect day!!
I was on the other side of the pool taking pictures and feeling so happy watching the kids enjoying themselves. I looked down at my camera for a split second and looked back up. My eight-year-old grandson was just straightening up and something didn’t look quite right about him. He must have seen the expression on my face because he then looked down at his leg and saw it covered in blood with a six-inch laceration on his left leg.
So, the problem that became quite apparent to me was how to get him out of the bush. We were out of cell reception and I had four children and two dogs to contend with. Just to give you an idea of time, we had hiked an hour and a half to get to the falls. It was another 20 minutes before I was back in cell range and I had some issues about getting my grandson out of the bush by myself. He would have to be carried over some difficult parts of the trail and up the 100- foot hill to where my truck was parked.
I called 911 and talked to BC Ambulance and explained my predicament, and the fact that I would need an ambulance for my grandson but they would have to get Search & Rescue to get him out. In the end, everyone came and saved the day. My grandson is now sporting a six-inch laceration to the left leg and has 24 stitches on the outside that he is very proud of!
So, saying all that Spencer and I cannot thank everyone enough for all the effort they put into helping get us out of the bush and to the hospital.
We would like to thank our (Nicola Valley) Search and Rescue team from taking time out of their busy day and coming to our rescue. We also hope the one gentleman from SAR has recovered and is doing well.
A very special thanks goes out to BCAS dispatch for coordinating everything and “pinging” us—got to love 911 and GPS!
I personally want to thank paramedics, Wendy Mowat and Edward Peters for going above and beyond the call of duty. They were exceptional! You guys rock!
Thank you to Dr. Garry Feinstadt and the nursing staff for being so kind and patient with Spencer—he does have a great set of lungs.
As a grandmother, I am pleased and so thankful that this all came together and there was a positive outcome to the story.
As a paramedic/dispatcher, everything fell into place as we always hope it would, and that is due to our BCAS Communications Centre putting into action the resources that were needed, and did it in a timely manner.
Thank you, Grandma and Spencer.
Mae Webster
Merritt