August 2022

 

The plan for this blog was to gather as many little details as possible to create a sufficiently interesting narrative for this month.  Brian fixed all that with much more drama than we ever bargained for.

The Trip to Vancouver Island

We decided on the spur of the moment to go out to Vancouver Island for a few days to escape the heat here and have a change of scenery.  It started out well, with 3 nights in Victoria where we could re-experience city life, go to a variety of restaurants and do some walking around/exploring in the area.

From there we went to Nanaimo to spend a night with good friends on Gabriola Island.  The next day we headed north to explore the Comox-Courtney area; I had worked on the base at Comox for four months one summer, and there reportedly was a great air museum at the base that Brian wanted to see.

Accommodation was impossible to find, so we drove another 45 minutes up to Campbell River and parked there to do a little looking around.

Brian’s Drama

Campbell River has a lot of walking available, and we chose to do the Ripple Rock Trail—a famous trail just over 4 km. leading to a viewpoint over a channel.  Off we set.  It was a beautiful day, and the trail was well set out, although narrow.  This was the essence of the problem that unfolded.

Brian stepped aside to let some people going the other way to pass—he lost his footing and tumbled over and over, landing about 15 feet down from the trail.  We all rushed to retrieve him, and the fellow who had been stepped aside for identified himself as a retired GP.   Brian mentioned his right arm hurt and the GP manipulated it gently to determine nothing was broken.  He then eventually walked on, probably thinking that Brian was shaken up and just needed a little time to gather himself.

Not!  Brian broke 5 of his right ribs (#’s 7-11), broke 3 wings off his lowest vertebrae and had experienced a collapsed lung which occurred as he fell.  He was also scraped, scratched and bruised all over. 

Here is where the incredible luck started.  Another couple, a Swiss pair travelling in Canada, stayed with us and eventually helped Brian a little way along a path where we discovered a little cove with boat access.  Once we were there, I called 911 and Search and Rescue (SAR) was deployed to come pick him up.

Unfortunately, this was not without some technical difficulties.  Phone signal was intermittent; with the Swiss guy and I each calling, we got enough information to dispatch to get help.  Still, they were not entirely sure of our location, and efforts to get a fix on my phone failed because I had run out of data for the month.  (This has never happened before, of course.).

More incredible luck happened.  We had passed another couple on the trail and chatted with them for a few minutes before they continued on.  They hit the summit, and then returned, keeping an eye out for us.  They started getting concerned when they couldn’t see us, and Markus went on a mission to find us.  He eventually did, and he completed the communication to SAR with a GPS fix that made things much easier.  (It was funny—when he finally found us, he gave us a good scolding for leaving the trail!!  Obviously, he had been very concerned.)

SAR picked up Brian and I in a zodiac, and took him to an ambulance on the closest wharf, while another volunteer drove me back to the trail parking lot to retrieve our car.  The boat then made a second pass back to the cove, and picked up Markus and his friend so they could be driven back to their car.  Apparently, a helicopter was ready if needed. Still, it took two hours from the accident to the rescue, and Brian was in terrible pain.

Campbell River Hospital is a gem.  The building is only about 5 years old, and like other places the hospital is understaffed, overcrowded and challenged to the max.  Having said that, I can’t believe the quality of care Brian received from the emergency team, the surgeons, the doctors, the nurses, the cleaning staff and the kitchen workers who would come up to check his meal preferences for the next day.  They were cheerful, positive and tremendously supportive.

His roommate was a different issue.  Harvey was deaf, suffering from blood poisoning, diabetes and low kidney function.  He was also exhibiting some signs of dementia.  He was disruptive at night, with the highlight being the night he called 911 to report the traffic accident.  Fortunately, the dispatcher clued in fairly quickly, but when the nurse came to take away his phone, he refused to cooperate.  Finally, after a week of this, Harvey was transferred to another room and a more easy-going roommate was transferred in.  Lyle had a broken pelvis but was quiet, pleasant and had nice company.  The possibility of nighttime sleep opened up for Brian. 

Without going into details ad nauseum, when Brian got sprung 10 days later, all he could think of was getting home to his own bed.  I drove for an hour to near Nanaimo, whereupon he took over and got us to the ferry (one missed sailing) and then drove back to Osoyoos, arriving at about 11 pm. August 31.  Sitting was not too uncomfortable for him, and I think he relished being back in control after 10 days of willy-nilly unpleasant experiences.  Still, I was so impressed by his determination and perseverance.

Ribs take 6-8 weeks to heal, and with the number broken he will have to take it easy.  Our priorities over the next week will be to get back to a regular sleep pattern, regular tasty meals, and some walking to get him back to moving more naturally.  He does heal quickly, and he keeps himself in good shape, which works in his favour.

We have been blessed with ongoing concern and support from a large number of family, friends, neighbours and new friends.  Thank you for all of your good wishes, calls and support.  You have no idea of how those contacts made a difference to someone facing days that seemed 100 years long in the hospital.

The Scene of the Crime

 

So, this has been too long and boring but everyone has wanted to hear the details about Brian. I will save some of this month's highlights for the September report.  I have some lovely pictures taken from Campbell River (they will keep) and of the fruit being harvested here (the same happens every year but it is always good….).

 

Just a few factoids:

This August has been the warmest on record for the whole of BC, with a number of cities/towns/villages breaking records.  Our wet June held off a potentially horrendous fire season, and we have not been threatened.  A number of dry thunderstorms with lightening strikes threatened our area but few spot fires were created.  The stats for the lightening strikes were impressive:

Aug 10:  2617 strikes

Aug 11:  2665 strikes

Aug 12:  2665 strikes

Cheers, guys!  Thanks for visiting.