BWCA Another Air Evacuation Boundary Waters Listening Point - General Discussion
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06/22/2018 09:26PM   (Thread Older Than 3 Years)
Another search and rescue for injured youth out of Gaskin Lake. Story link here Search & Rescue
 
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Savage Voyageur
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06/22/2018 09:31PM  
Dang that’s sad news. I hope he’s going to make a full recovery.
 
06/22/2018 09:41PM  
Hope everything turns out OK for everyone involved. That is not a great story to read...
 
TipsyPaddler
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06/23/2018 08:56PM  
My 14 year old step son was the patient airlifted from Gaskin to Grand Marais on Friday afternoon. He had a grand mal seizure and hit the back of his head very hard when he collapsed. He scared the heck out of us but he is doing very well. We need to figure out what triggered the seizure as it hadn’t happened before. I felt terrible leaving my buddy and my stepson’s best friend to paddle out with two canoes and two packs. It was a scary ending to an otherwise near perfect BWCA experience.

I am incredibly thankful for:

* The US Forestry Service and Cook County Emergency Response Team had my son and I moved from Gaskin to Grand Marais ER in 3 hours after I hit the SOS button on my Garmin Inreach

* At least 4 different people helped the other two members on our party get the two canoes and packs from Gaskin to the Poplar-Liz Portage at the four portages they had to cross on the paddle out

* The owners of Rockwood Lodge & Outfitters who met them at the Poplar-Liz portage with a motor boat to get them across Poplar safe and fast

* My wife for getting me a Garmin Inreach for Christmas. I didn’t expect to test its full functionality on the first trip of the season! I will never cross a BWCA EP without one.

So we had to leave 24 hours earlier than planned and had a scary 6-8 hours Friday but between good preparedness, great people and some luck on where/when the seizure happened it all worked out very well in the end.

 
campcrafter
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06/23/2018 09:39PM  
Tipsy,
Read a boy hit his head in the boreal.org article. Appreciate you sharing additional details.
Glad your stepson is doing well and hope they find the cause for the seizure. I know how scary that can be and can only imagine how frightening it must have been to have happened the first time out in the bush.

All the best to you and yours.

Blue Skies!
cc
 
06/23/2018 09:46PM  
What a scary thing to happen, especially as it had never happened before. Glad you were as prepared as you were, and that your stepson is doing better. I hope you all have more good memories than bad from this trip (maybe not this week, but eventually).
 
ellahallely
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06/23/2018 10:10PM  
Glad all turned out okay. This will be a great campfire story for your family for many years.


I hope for the best.
 
Mashuga
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06/23/2018 10:14PM  
Tipsy, what a scary experience that must have been. I'm glad things worked out well and hope your step son has a full recovery. Hopefully he is looking forward to the next trip. How very fortunate that you had the inReach. I received one for Fathers Day and will have it along for our August trip.
 
andym
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06/23/2018 10:47PM  
Tipsypaddler, thank you for sharing and I’m glad he is doing so well.

We’ve carried a PLB for a while now and just got an Inreach. I’m glad it worked for you.
 
06/23/2018 11:40PM  
Glad to hear everything turned out the best it could have...

Thanks for sharing.

 
06/24/2018 09:48AM  
Tipsy..........So glad to hear everything worked out well. I'm hoping for continued recovery and that you guys can figure out what caused the seizure so it doesn't happen again.

Thank you for letting us know how everything turned out.

I will make sure I don't forget my PLB when my 13 yo duckling and I head out on our daddy/daughter trip this week.

Did you use the Garmin Inreach to communicate back and forth w SAR? Did you use it to let Rockwood know and that was how they met them at the Lizz portage with the boat? Were you able to let people at home know what was going on throughout? Sorry for all the questions... I'm curious because I've been thinking about getting an Inreach when the battery life runs out on my PLB and this story has pretty much made that decision for me now.

On Thursday I'm going to give Carl and Mike a big high five and "way to go" when we stay in the bunkhouse at Rockwood.

 
06/24/2018 01:20PM  
Thanks for the update Tipsy. Best wishes to your step-son. Hoping for a full recovery. Kudos to all involved in the rescue and evacuation. Way to go Rockwood for meeting the remainder of the group at the entry with motor boats. Hoping for a safe and uneventful remainder of the season.
 
06/24/2018 01:57PM  
Yes, glad all turned out well, Tipsy; worrisome for sure, hope they get to the bottom of his problem soon.
 
missmolly
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06/24/2018 02:21PM  
Whew, Tipsy! My sis had a few seizures when she was young, but not one in more than half a century due to medication. I think a pill will cure this ill.
 
scramble4a5
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06/24/2018 03:06PM  
Glad to hear he will get better. Hats off to you for being well prepared.
 
Northwoodsman
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06/24/2018 03:59PM  
Tipsy, thanks for the follow-up. I'm glad that he is doing better. That must have been a scary ordeal. I'm glad to see that people were willing to help the two remaining paddlers. Hats off to the folks at Rockwood. I also carry an InReach, I can't say enough good things about it. A few reasons why I like an InReach over other similar devices: 1) Two way messaging. You know that someone is on the way. 2) You can communicate with your family, friends, outfitter or ? Maybe you don't need a float plane to come and get you, but perhaps you need a canoe, or a tow, or a splint. Maybe you are going to be late coming out. 3) The plans are affordable. 4) When you send messages, you can test if it's working if the people you are sending to reply.

It sounds like a happy ending. One of several incidents this week where a satellite device not only came in handy, but may have saved lives.
 
06/24/2018 04:45PM  
Glad to hear everyone is safe.
 
TipsyPaddler
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06/24/2018 04:52PM  
ducks: "Did you use the Garmin Inreach to communicate back and forth w SAR? Did you use it to let Rockwood know and that was how they met them at the Lizz portage with the boat? Were you able to let people at home know what was going on throughout? Sorry for all the questions... I'm curious because I've been thinking about getting an Inreach when the battery life runs out on my PLB and this story has pretty much made that decision for me now.


On Thursday I'm going to give Carl and Mike a big high five and "way to go" when we stay in the bunkhouse at Rockwood.
"


I could not communicate directly with the local SAR team as everything from the Garmin InReach is routed through the IERCC but they played intermediary and kept all parties updated with ETAs and patient status.

I did not contact Rockwood via the InReach but I could have if I had the forethought to add their phone and email to my contact list (d’uh...face palm!). I had my mobile phone as well and called them from the Grand Marais ER once I had my stepson in good hands and had cell service. My buddy and I used the time waiting for the plane to make sure the “right guy” had the phone, car keys, etc. and coordinate things as extraction plan details got clearer.

Carl at Rockwood was awesome ...I told him want was going on and all he said was basically “Got it, on my way!” His timing according to my buddy was Hollywood blockbuster perfect with the motor boat entering the bay just as he set down the last pack and canoe at the end of the Poplar-Lizz portage.

I could text with my wife as well. I had been sending her and the other moms/wives “just checking in” preset messages every 12-14 hours all trip which was great. Unfortunately the call from the IERCC totally freaked her out. They pumped her for details she didn’t have (e.g. what color was our canoe?) and couldn’t tell her any details about who was hurt, status, etc. I had decided not to text her until I had more details on our son’s status and the extraction plan but in hindsight I should have sent her a quick text right after hitting the SOS button. I spaced that she would be their first call (or right after calling the local Emergency Response Team.) That is probably my only regret on that afternoon as she had an unnecessarily extra stressful hour or so by me not texting her right away.

Let me know what it would take to upgrade the high five for Carl and team at Rockwood to a big hug!
 
06/24/2018 05:16PM  
Tipsy,

I'm so glad things worked out, I have been on two Grand Mal Seizure's while they were happening. One like your situation, was the first one for this fellow.
Having been a emergency responder for 29 years and launching the Search and Rescue recently, I kinda know waht you were going through, but it is always different when it is a family member.

Good luck and thanks for sharing.
 
06/24/2018 09:03PM  
Thanks for sharing, prayers he feels better soon. I'm so glad you didn't panic and kept calm.
 
06/25/2018 10:05AM  
TipsyPaddler: "


Let me know what it would take to upgrade the high five for Carl and team at Rockwood to a big hug!"


Nothing! You got it!!!!! I think they deserve some cold beer also :)

I'm trying to figure out what kind of beer he likes and I'll bring him some from the brewery in our town. He posted a pic of a meal at the Trail Center recently on his facebook page, but the beer can is turned so I can tell what kind it is. Otherwise I'll flip a coin and hope he likes it.

Thank you for the additional info. You did an amazing job of coordinating, keeping calm, and getting things done to help him though a very scary situation. This all helps us be prepared for an emergency situation.

 
andym
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06/25/2018 12:57PM  
Tipsypaddler, thank you for fleshing out the story some more. I’ll be setting up my Inreach based on your experience. Also, my emergency contacts will be friends in Ely rather than family. My wife is always with me on trips and my Mom would not be calm.

It’s good to know that the rescue center did a good job of being intermediary. I had thought of adding the local rescue folks to my contacts, I would carry those numbers with a sat phone, but texting them separately might confuse things and make them think there is a second incident.
 
06/25/2018 06:19PM  

Let me know what it would take to upgrade the high five for Carl and team at Rockwood to a big hug!"
Nothing! You got it!!!!! I think they deserve some cold beer also :)
I'm trying to figure out what kind of beer he likes and I'll bring him some from the brewery in our town. He posted a pic of a meal at the Trail Center recently on his facebook page, but the beer can is turned so I can tell what kind it is. Otherwise I'll flip a coin and hope he likes it.


It was our pleasure, the good news is that Cooper is doing well and he'll be back in the BWCAW soon. Ducks, Grainbelt Premium is the beer of choice, but my second favorite is whatever brewery is in your town. Ummmmm beer.

Since Poplar isn't a huge lake we don't have proper tow boats set up at Rockwood, but after this excursion it might be good to get a rack built for our boat - you never know!
BTW, Rockwood rents Garmin inReach, we have two!

See you soon!
 
06/25/2018 08:33PM  
Grainbelt Premium Carl!!!!! That brings back some great memories of my Town Team Baseball Days. When we'd go to the local establishment after a win we'd tell the bartender.............. It's a premo night ;)

See you Thursday
 
06/25/2018 11:34PM  
Thanks all for sharing. So glad for all the help provided and that the outcome appears to be good. Thankful kiddo is out of the woods, literally and figuratively.
 
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