The Story of Beth's Rescue... and a Farewell

Once Beth was out of danger, I found myself wondering about her rescue, and what that looked like. About a week after her fall, she told me that a Rocky Mountain Rescue Group member involved in her evacuation had visited her in the ICU and filled in some of the missing pieces. Sensing a story, I contacted him to get the details. Greg answered a zillion questions and was very patient with my desire to flesh out the details. He did underline more than once that he was just one player on a large and complex team that executed Beth’s timely removal from the canyon, and I assured him I would communicate that. Rocky Mountain Rescue sounds like an amazing organization—we are so lucky to have their expertise and their talent in our own beautiful back yard.

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Greg Norton, a volunteer for eight years with the Rocky Mountain Rescue Group (RMRG), was enjoying a Nepalese lunch at Sherpa’s on a sunny Sunday afternoon when he was paged. “Rocky Mountain Rescue, Sugarloaf Fire, Boulder County Emergency Services, Pridemark Paramedics respond to the Bihedral climbing area for a technical rescue of a climber who fell 20 feet. Patient is on the wall. Conscious and breathing.” Because of Sherpa’s location – essentially at the base of Boulder Canyon – he was among the first on the scene of Beth’s accident. Other RMRG members also responded from Nederland, Boulder, and Louisville.

Greg, 26, was one small part of the effort; a complicated rescue like this involves a massive coordinated response from the above agencies as well as the Boulder County Communications Center, the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, and Flight for Life. RMRG had about 15 members in the field to help Beth (additional members of the group were involved in a simultaneous rescue in Gregory Canyon).

Greg became interested in Search and Rescue when he witnessed a climbing accident a number of years ago. He was climbing in Castlewood Canyon when a sixteen-year-old fell from about 60 feet and landed next to him. He and his friend cared for the injured climber as best they could until the local fire department evacuated him. Greg found himself wishing he could have done more for the patient and subsequently took an EMT class. It was only a matter of time, given circumstance and location, before he heard about RMRG and began training with them. It was a great way to combine his interests and outdoor hobbies, while giving back to the Boulder community. He enjoys medicine and now works in an ER as an EMT.

A sense of urgency always exists en route to a climbing accident, but the RMRG members respond to enough calls that they know the importance of staying calm. In addition to participating in the communication among parties responding to the page, as Greg drove up the canyon he began running through different scenarios such as where the patient was, what equipment might be required, what additional resources to request, etc. Boulder Canyon is a busy area for RMRG, especially the Bihedral and Happy Hour Crag. These are both top-rope areas, and a surprising number of accidents occur after people have gotten off the rock and let their guard down. Reminder to all of us: let’s be vigilant about safety until we are back at the car with our gear safely stowed! As you know, Beth fell after both she and Karla were off the rock and closing up shop for the day – she was attempting to retrieve a pinched rope.

Karla was waiting for Greg by the road and quickly communicated all the important information about Beth’s fall. They had to wait for the RMRG rescue truck to show up (they call it “1970”) with the necessary gear. Greg said it took about another minute but he could tell from Karla’s face that she felt like years were passing as those seconds ticked by. When 1970 arrived he grabbed a medical pack, another member, Jake, got climbing equipment and a rope, Katie grabbed her paramedic’s bag and they all followed Karla to the base of the Bihedral, roughly 1000 feet away.

Karla had told them that Beth was critically injured, and because the climbing was not too difficult, Greg and Jake decided to climb the 30 feet directly to Beth and make sure she was secured to the rock. They believed time was of the essence, and the benefit of climbing to her outweighed the risk.

Beth was very pale, lethargic, and in shock. She was covered in blood and managed to clearly tell them that she was having trouble breathing.

Greg immediately began medical care, while Jake worked on setting up an anchor above them. Because of the extent of Beth’s injuries, Katie also climbed up to the ledge to provide additional medical care. Beth’s lung had been perforated by her ribs (14 were broken), and they had to insert a 10-inch needle to release trapped air so it could re-inflate. She also had a broken clavicle, humerus, and ankle, as well as upper and lower spinal fractures. A Flight for Life helicopter was requested and while they waited for it to arrive, Katie and Greg continued a number of medical procedures to stabilize Beth on the rocky outcrop.

RMRG began in 1947, and is one of the busiest volunteer teams in the nation, responding to approximately 140 calls per year. They specialize in vertical or "high-angle" rescues because of Boulder County's topography. Engineers, physicians, lawyers, EMTs, and students make up their membership. Because many members have a comprehensive understanding of physics and engineering, RMRG conducts independent testing of their equipment and climbing gear, which they adapt for mountain rescue, on their test tower. They are a 501(c)(3) tax-deductible organization and operate on roughly $60,000 annually, much of that from donations (all rescues are free).  If you are interested, check out further details at www.rmrg.net.

While Beth was being stabilized, other rescuers were securing an anchor above her and preparing to bring down a “litter” – a specialized backboard designed by RMRG members for mountain rescues. Other members below were preparing an evacuation route to the road for when the litter came down off the cliff face, and still another group was coordinating the combined rescue effort from the base of the cliff.

Greg said the most challenging part of the rescue was carefully yet quickly loading Beth into the litter. In an ideal situation they use eight people to do this, but there was only room for five of them on the ledge that had broken her fall. It's a difficult and awkward process. On a small, crowded ledge, with Beth clearly in distress, they assembled the litter, placed a beanbag body splint inside it, and then set the litter down next to Beth. They then lifted Beth as a unit, being careful to protect her spine and other injuries, and positioned her in the litter. Once that was completed, they sucked the air out of the beanbag to create a custom full-body splint. Beth was then secured to the litter and a helmet was placed on her head. The litter was attached to the anchor and she was lowered to the ground. RMRG refers to this kind of steep, non-vertical evacuation as a "scree evac."

Prospective RMRG members complete approximately a year of training to learn necessary skills and gain the trust of fellow members.  Skills range from medical training to technical rope systems to avalanche rescue to mountain weather to navigation. All members are required to have basic first aid and CPR training. Multiple levels of membership exist and, once a member, individuals are required to make a certain number of trainings per year, plus complete an annual skills competence check-off. Medical professionals in the group include first responders, EMTs, paramedics, nurses, physician assistants, and physicians.

During the time that they were treating Beth, the Flight for Life helicopter flew over them. As it prepared to land in the middle of Boulder Canyon, it hovered right beside them for a few seconds and they could look in and see the pilot, the nurse, and the paramedic. Kind of an amazing visual, isn’t it? Meanwhile, the firefighters and sheriff's officers closed down the highway so that the helicopter could land, and the paramedic and nurse immediately hiked to the base of the Bihedral to help with medical care once Beth was on the ground. The total elapsed time from Beth’s fall to lift-off in the helicopter to St. Anthony’s Central was two hours. Astounding that all that was coordinated in such a short time frame!

Greg confirmed that Beth's life was absolutely in danger, and a longer delay without medical care would very likely have resulted in a different outcome. The trauma physician said that because Beth is so healthy and strong, she was able to survive a level of injury that most would not have. Let’s hear it for Masters swimming, long runs, organic food, and healthy living!

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Beth and I talked about this blog a few days ago, and it seems like the perfect time to hand the torch to her. I was honored to be her voice when she couldn’t speak and her hands when she couldn’t type. And now I'm happy, given her recovery, to be no longer necessary in that regard! It has been an amazing experience to be part of this virtual community, and I thank you for reading and for joining me on this unexpected journey. Beth will continue to post weekly updates, so don’t retire the link just yet—the story marches on... 


Warmly,
Linda xoxo