River rescue saves 9-year-old boy from drowning
BY TODD ADAMS
A 9-year-old boy survived a near drowning after his group’s raft hit this boulder and capsized, trapping him underwater for about 10 minutes.
dramatic rescue last week on the upper Salmon River between Warm Springs and Peach creeks saved the life of a 9-year-old Utah boy after he was pinned underwater beneath a raft for 10 minutes. The boy, Andrew Gardner of Sandy, Utah, is expected by staff at St. Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise to make a full recovery from his near drowning, said Custer County Deputy Trever Dowton.
Andrew was floating the popular section of the Salmon River Monday afternoon, July 12, along with his father and six others who had rented a raft for the day. The group had successfully paddled through the toughest rapids on the stretch, when the sideways-floating raft hit a big rock in the middle of the river and flipped over, wrapping itself around the boulder. It was uncertain who was steering the paddle raft, Dowton said. The boy’s leg was caught by a rope attached to the raft, which held him under the cold water for about 10 minutes as the group tried several times to free him. The father, Brandon Gardner, eventually was able to free the boy by cutting the rope, Dowton said.
Andrew was wearing a helmet and life vest, Dowton said, and apparently hit his head against the boulder when the raft overturned. Two kayakers in a separate party, one of whom is a nurse, soon arrived and administered CPR for about 17 minutes, said Launna Gunderson, who responded along with the Stanley Ambulance and the Swiftwater Rescue Team. She didn’t have the kayakers’ names. Dowton was only a mile and a half away when he got the emergency call at 4:23 p.m. and was able to respond within five minutes. He arrived in time to help administer CPR. The boy started breathing about two and a half minutes later and color started returning to his face, Dowton said. An EMT administered oxygen and the boy was flown by Life Flight helicopter to St. Alphonsus.
At the Boise hospital, doctors kept Andrew cold and induced a coma to help him fight off pneumonia from bacteria in the residual river water in his lungs, Dowton said. They warmed him up slowly to prevent brain damage.
When the boy later regained consciousness at the hospital, he was able to respond to questions, so staff told the family to expect a full recovery, Gunderson confirmed. “At this time it doesn’t appear there was brain damage,” she said. “The family wanted me to pass on to the crew and kayakers and everyone who helped their great appreciation.” Fish and Game Officer Merritt Horsmon was a big help in relaying communications back and forth between the accident scene, dispatch and Life Flight, said Dowton. “It was extraordinary. It was a miracle,” Gunderson said of the rescue. “We’re absolutely elated around here.” Andrew will likely be in the hospital for rehabilitation for another week or two, Gunderson said. “It’s good news,” said Dowton, adding that none of the seven other members in the unguided party was injured when the raft flipped. “It’s amazing how cold water can save you,” said Dowton. “It was a very happy ending.”
Humans immersed in cold water experience what is called the mammalian diving reflex, which protects the body from near-drowning accidents, according to the U.S. Search and Rescue Task Force’s website. The reflex acts to divert blood away from the arms and legs to circulate between the heart, brain and lungs. It’s not as pronounced as it is in marine mammals, which can remain underwater without brain damage for up to half an hour. Because victims have symptoms such as blue skin, no detectable pulse or breathing and dilated pupils, it’s often mistaken for death. In general, the colder the water, the more protective the reflex is to the brain. Younger people have a more active reflex. Children have been brought up from freezing water and successfully resuscitated after 30 minutes, so CPR should always be attempted. “Someone was looking out for him,” said dispatcher Linda Lumpkin. “It was an awesome job” by all of the emergency responders, she said.
