I don’t have dates on the events described here in a fascinating article in the June, 1987, issue of “Emergency” magazine. A group of professional guides and river rescue instructors were boating for pleasure on the James when a pair of tubers attempted to run Hollywood Rapid, the biggest drop on the river. Neither was wearing a life jacket when they were pulled out of their tubes in the top hole; the man swam for safety while his female companion was swept downstream She got caught in the second hole, then caught her foot while attempting to stand up in the fat-moving current. The author of the article, Nancy Roberts White of the Wilderness Challenge School ( Chesapeake, VA ) describes what happened after the victim caught her throw line, but could not hold on.

“As I ran, I watched the woman wash through the second hydraulic. I shouted at her not to stand up. When she disappeared my stomach turned. With three whistle blasts I signaled Glen Carlson, pointing to where I had last seen her, shouting, “She’s still underwater!” His face registered dismay as he paddled, straining to find her through the churning water.

“I knew she had probably caught her foot on something, because she looked as if she was trying to stand up in her panic to get a breath of air . . .

“Seconds seemed like hours as I scanned the water, then I heard Mike’s whistle blasts by a boulder ten yards away. They had found her! The first priority was to get her head above water. Maneuvering behind the boulder, Glen and Mike scrambled out of their boat and grabbed throw lines. The woman was under water and therefore out of reach, and could not be helped by a kayak until brought to the surface. I was sitting on a midstream boulder opposite Glen, who threw me a line to anchor with a sitting hip belay.

“I knew that a stabilization line, a rope strung horizontally in front of the victim, was our goal. If she was conscious, she might be able to grab the line and gain enough stability to lift her head up. If not, we would convert it to a ‘snag line’ by weighting it and lowering it under the surface of the water, then pulling it upstream to dislodge the victim. Mike remained in his kayak in case she came free.

“Both techniques sound simple but are more difficult to carry out. We maneuvered the line upstream and attempted to hook it under the victim who seemed to be just below the surface . . . we were finally able to work it under the victim. The pressure on the rope and the force of the current was unbelievable. . .I tightened my grasp and pulled harder upstream. Suddenly I  heard Glen shout, “She’s conscious! She’s got the rope!’

“She struggled to the surface of the water and . . . instantly was freed from whatever had trapped her and was floating downstream. Glen and Mike scrambled into their boats and raced to recover our semi-conscious victim. Quickly turning her face-up and paddling carefully, they were able to position her between the kayaks and maneuver her to the eddy behind my rock.

“As we pulled her onto the rock I quickly assessed her condition. Semi-conscious, hypothermic, but definitely breathing. A deformed and discolored foot and ankle, and a protruding bone indicated at least a compound fracture. Much to my relief our victim turned patient began to gasp, sputter, and cough, then began sobbing with relief as we wrapped her in polypropylene jackets. We began to stabilize her and treat for shock . . . A part ranger had arrived and shouted that a rescue squad was on its way. Total elapsed time was under ten minutes.”

COMMENTS: This was one lucky person. It’s not every time that you screw up on the river in front of a group of river guide / rescue trainer / EMTs. A well-thought out and executed save.

Glen Carlson gives seminars on the skills used in this rescue and many other techniques. I feel that he is one of the nation’s most innovative and dynamic river rescue instructors.