Accident Database

Report ID# 2070

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  • Impact/Trauma
  • Head Injury / Concussion
  • Spinal Injury
  • Other

Accident Description

July 15, 2006 By Tim Henigin

We had a bad day down at Rivers End on sat. I went with Jackie on the womans trip because she didn't want be without me. Jackie followed me though the rapid. She had a good line, but something flipped her at the end. She missed her 1st roll, came up on her 2nd try, got flipped again, then hit a rock upside down breaking her neck.

What followed was an amazing rescue. She ended up being life flighted to AGH in Pittsburgh,where she works, The unit she works in operated on her Sunday, and after 6 long hours she did great, yesterday she was walking around and joking, don't know how long she will be there but things are getting better. I want to thank everyone who helped get her out out of the river Sat. Those people saved her life. Keep us in your prayers, be careful out on the water.

Below is the account from Larry Fordyce, who assisted in a rescue of a woman (Jackie Hennigan) who suffered a spine injury on the Lower Yough on Sat. July 15. Her husband recounted: “I went with Jackie on the womans trip because she didn't want be without me. Jackie followed me though the rapid, had a good line, but something flipped her at the end, she missed her 1st roll, came up on her 2nd try, got flipped again, then hit a rock upside down breaking her neck.

What followed was an amazing rescue. She ended up being life flighted to AGH in Pittsburgh, where she works, The unit she works in operated on her Sunday, and after 6 long hours she did great, yesterday she was walking around and joking, don't know how long she will be there but things are getting better. “

Here is Larry’s Account: “When I first saw Jackie’s boat, it was floating upside down at the head of the pool, a couple of boat lengths upstream. As I paddled over to her, one hand came up on the upstream side of her boat and then went back down. I setup for the Eskimo rescue or to pick her up if she bailed. After a few seconds, someone said, “they’re not moving”. I don’t know who this person was but they deserve all the credit for Jackie coming out of her boat breathing. I was still waiting for her to wet exit. As soon as this person said it, I too realized that the boat was not moving. I gave a quick sweep to move along side, dropped my paddle and did the hand of god rescue. As I got the boat half way up when Jackie washed out of her boat. She was on her back and not moving. I grabbed her wrist, eased her around her boat, righted my boat off hers, and checked in with her all at the same time. Her first response was incoherent sounds, and then she seemed to become more coherent and said “I feel dazed”.

I asked her if she could hang on to my boat. She answered, “my body feels numb.” She grabbed my boat with one hand beside the cockpit. Her voice was week, she was crying, but calm and coherent and trying hard to help. I called out that I did not have a paddle and again, someone was there and said, “Here take mine". I started to paddle to river right where there was a beach. After only a couple of strokes she left go and as she did, said, “I can’t hang on”. I reached for her and missed. Again there was someone right there to pick up the thread. They grabbed her by the wrist and kept her floating on her back with her head beside their boat. I started pushing them to river left as I was on their right. Others joined in and we eased them into the eddy.”

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