Rescuing injured youth merits awards

NEWPORT — Last June Pend Oreille County Dispatcher Rachel Lee received a 911 call about a 15-year-old boy who had fallen down a 300-foot remote hillside and been seriously injured. He was one of three boys who had been hiking near Riverview Bible Camp, just off Highway 20 north of Newport when they got lost and he fell.

“Dispatcher Lee quickly built a rapport with the boys and kept them calm while they waited for first responders to arrive,” Blakeslee said. The boys didn’t know exactly where they were, but eventually rescuers were able to locate them. Lee was on the phone with the boys for over an hour and even prayed with the boys when they asked. The injured hiker had multiple fractures and a head injury. “She remained calm under pressure and provided lifesaving medical instructions at a critical time,” Blakeslee said, while she coordinated the initial response.

Lee was one of three people who received Citation of Meritorious Conduct awards from Pend Oreille County Sheriff Glenn Blakeslee in a ceremony with county commissioners at the courthouse Monday, Aug. 25. In addition to Lee, Deputy James Taylor and Deputy Dan Burke received recognition from Blakeslee. The trio was part of a bigger group involved in the boys’ rescue, some of whom were also presented awards by Steve Bruchman of U.S. Rep. Michael Baumgartner’s office. About 45 responders from 11 different agencies had been involved in the effort, which resulted in the injured youth being extracted with the help of a U.S. Air Force helicopter, Blakeslee said. The boy was released from the hospital and expected to make a full recovery.

Deputy Taylor took the lead in the initial contact with the injured boy, Blakeslee said, along with Deputy Burke and Fish and Game Wildlife Officer Severin Erickson. They were the first to get to the injured boy. They made their way in the rain about a half mile through a heavily wooded, rocky area with a 700-foot drop in elevation.

Burke told Blakeslee in an email that Taylor provided first aid to the boy, who had sustained a severe head injury, a broken wrist, broken teeth and a severe head injury, along with spinal fractures.

“His brother reported him as dead,” Chaplain Perry Pearman said of the 911 call reporting the fall.

Pearman comforted the hikers’ family and kept them informed of what was going on while the rescue was taking place. They were afraid for the boy, who was a twin.

Blakeslee said he had been contacted by at least four other first responders who reported that Taylor and Burke were instrumental in locating the boy, stabilizing him and conducting a successful extraction from a precarious location. WDFW Officer Severin Erickson was also instrumental and received a separate Life Saving Award from WDFW.

Burke also received a Citation of Meritorious Conduct.

“Although he gives credit to Deputy Taylor and Officer Erickson for their efforts, Deputy Burke also went above and beyond in his efforts,” Blakeslee said. Due to the weather conditions and the steep, rocky, heavily forested terrain, the helicopter was having trouble finding their exact location. “Deputy Burke was instrumental in providing clear directions to the crew of the helicopter, which enabled them to perform a successful extraction.”

The family of the boys held a spaghetti feed of appreciation at Riverview Bible Camp to express their thanks, Bruchman said. When Baumgartner heard what happened, he wanted to make sure the larger group involved in the rescue received recognition.

“It wasn’t just the people on the ground, it was so many others,” Bruchman said. Their planning and staging were key to ensuring the first responders didn’t get injured in the extraction. “That posed its own set of dangers.”

He said more than 50 people were honored at the Aug. 9 Riverview spaghetti feed.

“Those few people did the job we always hoped they would do if it were us or somebody we cared for,” Bruchman said. It took teamwork.

He gave out Certificates of Congressional Recognition from U.S. Congressman Michael Baumgartner to Deputy Kevin Olson and Sgt. Questin Youk, in addition to Pearman, Taylor and Burke.

Blakeslee said the rescue was a good example of the close work- ing relationships of all first responders in Pend Oreille County. He said among other agencies, the Sheriff’s Office, the Washington Department of Fish and Game, the Kalispel Tribe, Fire Districts 2, 4 and 5, the U.S. Air Force Survival School and Search and Rescue were involved in the rescue.

“It was all very well-coordinated and just an amazing event,” Blakeslee said.