An American hiker who works as a nurse took a trekking pole through his body during a Granite Peak climb and refused to wait for rescue. David Cifaldi, 32, walked about 16 kilometers down the mountain with his two friends before getting hospital treatment.
Cifaldi had long dreamed of reaching the top of Granite Peak, the highest summit in Montana at roughly 3,900 meters. Last week, he and two companions started their hike at about 3:30 a.m. They were around 300 meters below the peak, crossing a rocky area called Froze-to-Death Plateau, when he slipped on loose stones, dropped one trekking pole and fell onto the other.
The steel-tipped pole, about 112 centimeters long, went in under his left armpit and came out through his back. It cut through tissue but missed his lungs, chest and vital organs. Cifaldi, a wound-care nurse and former emergency department worker, kept his composure and assessed his own injuries.
Why he turned down evacuation
He was conscious, able to take deep breaths, had no dizziness and was losing only a small amount of blood. The pole was still firmly in place. He could feel it through the skin and concluded that it was not deeply embedded enough to threaten his life at that moment.
– When I fell, I knew something was wrong – Cifaldi told local station KTVQ.
The group contacted rescue services through a Garmin inReach satellite communicator. Cifaldi did not want to stay put for an evacuation. One reason was the possible cost of a helicopter ride, though assistance from the local search-and-rescue unit was free. He later stressed that money was not the only factor: he could keep in touch with the rescuers, and his friends were experienced in the mountains.
16 kilometers with a pole through his side
The descent took more than six hours and covered nearly 1,500 meters in elevation loss. The route included boulder fields, snow patches, steep slopes and unmarked sections, with the pole still sticking out of his body. One friend walked behind Cifaldi and kept an eye on him; another chose the safest path and warned other hikers. Cifaldi was most concerned that children hiking with their parents might see his serious wound.
Rescue teams got position and progress updates along the way. The first accident report reached them around 9:44 a.m. At roughly 1:30 p.m., the group said they were close to the trailhead and asked to have the nearest medical facility notified. Two hours later, they made it to their car. Cifaldi had walked the entire distance on his own.
His friends took him first to a medical facility in Columbus. There, doctors decided he needed more specialized care, so they continued to St. Vincent Regional Hospital in Billings, the hospital where Cifaldi works. The pole was safely removed, the wound was dressed, and within a few days he was back at work.
Cifaldi admitted that he was extremely lucky. If the pole had gone a few centimeters in another direction, it could have damaged a lung or other vital organs. – A few centimeters the other way and this would have been a completely different story – he said.
He has not given up on his goal. Once he fully recovers, he wants to try Granite Peak again with his friends. This time, the hikers will probably leave their trekking poles behind.
Źródło: Polsat News, Fot. Polsat News
