Sunday, March 04, 2007
Snowmobiler buried by avalanche survives - Seattle Times
A snowmobiler buried by an avalanche for about eight hours emerged with apparently little more than scratches, after a relative using a probe found him in an area officials say was off-limits to motorized travel.
Ryan Roberts, 34, of Kalispell, said he was astonished that he survived the avalanche, which swept over him late Thursday afternoon during a snowmobile trip in northwestern Montana's Flathead National Forest. He was found shortly before midnight.
"I guess I was just allowed to live another day," Roberts, a cement worker, said Friday in a telephone interview after his release from Kalispell Regional Medical Center earlier in the day.
...
He said he tumbled downhill and was buried face-up by about 4 feet of snow. After it became apparent that he could not move, Roberts said, he tried to remain calm and accept what he thought was his fate.
He said he remembered thinking, "Well, I'm going to die."
Roberts believes he passed out about five minutes later.
Companions immediately began searching for Roberts, who said that he usually carries a transceiver while snowmobiling but did not have it on the trip Thursday. The device emits a signal that can help searchers locate a person under snow.
...
Roberts credits his survival to a helmet that kept snow out of his face and to the use, on his back, of a thermal pain-relief pad that provided some warmth. He also said quick thinking by his family and fellow snowmobilers helped save his life.
Three men sat by the fire and put their legs beneath Roberts so he would not be on the snow. Members of the rescue group heated their clothes by the fire, then placed them on Roberts for warmth. Roberts said that after about five hours by the blaze, he felt able to ride out of the area on his uncle's snowmobile. ...
A snowmobiler buried by an avalanche for about eight hours emerged with apparently little more than scratches, after a relative using a probe found him in an area officials say was off-limits to motorized travel.
Ryan Roberts, 34, of Kalispell, said he was astonished that he survived the avalanche, which swept over him late Thursday afternoon during a snowmobile trip in northwestern Montana's Flathead National Forest. He was found shortly before midnight.
"I guess I was just allowed to live another day," Roberts, a cement worker, said Friday in a telephone interview after his release from Kalispell Regional Medical Center earlier in the day.
...
He said he tumbled downhill and was buried face-up by about 4 feet of snow. After it became apparent that he could not move, Roberts said, he tried to remain calm and accept what he thought was his fate.
He said he remembered thinking, "Well, I'm going to die."
Roberts believes he passed out about five minutes later.
Companions immediately began searching for Roberts, who said that he usually carries a transceiver while snowmobiling but did not have it on the trip Thursday. The device emits a signal that can help searchers locate a person under snow.
...
Roberts credits his survival to a helmet that kept snow out of his face and to the use, on his back, of a thermal pain-relief pad that provided some warmth. He also said quick thinking by his family and fellow snowmobilers helped save his life.
Three men sat by the fire and put their legs beneath Roberts so he would not be on the snow. Members of the rescue group heated their clothes by the fire, then placed them on Roberts for warmth. Roberts said that after about five hours by the blaze, he felt able to ride out of the area on his uncle's snowmobile. ...
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