A Story of Gravity, Miscalculation, and Consequences
Last July, a severe thunderstorm roared through Byng. Damage was light to moderate. On my patch, the only damage was confined to the north side of the huge, 150-year-old black walnut tree, a third of which fell away from tree. Since the downed trunk and branches fell into the pasture away from the house, I decided to leave it until the weather was cooler before cutting the trunk and branches into pieces that I would give away to my woodcrafter friends, as well as building a few nice bonfires when fire danger was low.
Cutting down and cutting up went well over the Christmas break, and the damaged part was in chunks and given away or on the pile for the bonfire by the new year.
Task and Purpose
A portion of the tree that remained was then very lopsided, including a long, thick branch that was hanging over the garage, which might fall when spring storms arrived. The branch was long and heavy, and had a feeling it would be a bad idea to tackle it alone.
Tuesday, January 20, my friend and fellow photographer Robert came for a visit from Tulsa. He wanted a nice piece of the walnut, and if that didn’t keep us busy, we’d find something photographic to do. The weather was nice, though, and I am a “don’t put it off” person, so it seemed like an opportunity to get this tree-trimming chore done.
Robert and I worked with two chain saws, a full-sized one and a mini one, lopping the ends off the branch. It went fast and felt like we were getting it done.
The Incident
Before long we had cut the branch as far back as we could. To cut any more of it would require me to stand on a short ladder, holding my chain saw up to reach it. Neither of us thought this was a bad idea, but we both miscalculated the fact that the loads on the limb between the tree and the ground caused it to be under tension. When the cut went through, it sprang up, then down, hitting me in the back of the head, shoulders and neck, knocking me off the ladder, then pinning my left leg under it.
Robert sprang into action, calling 911, then pulling the branch off my leg. He discovered that I was bleeding from the parietal area of my head on the right side, so he had me grasp it with both hands and apply pressure.
My friends from the Byng Fire Department arrived very quickly and attended to me. I was lucid and seemed to be neurologically intact (I could move everything and I was making sense,) but there was no hesitation about putting me in the Mercy EMS ambulance for a trip to the emergency room.
The Standard of Medical Care
I have a ton of hospital and emergency room experience since, in the last years of her life, my wife Abby needed a lot of care. I was always curious about medicine, and learned a lot about her health situation so I would be a better advocate for her medical treatments.
The health care professionals did a great job with her at all stages of her illnesses and death, and I hope my advocacy and gratitude helped make that possible.
Now, of course, it was my turn to be flat on my back, and, as with Abby, everyone did their jobs thoroughly and professionally – they took good care of me. I received my first ever CT scan, then got seven staples and a stitch in my head. I thought they would send me home with an ice pack and a scolding, but the CT scan showed a “subtle” reading of a subarachnoid hemorrhage, or bleeding into the area surrounding my brain, as well as a small break in the spinous process of my C6 vertebra, which was minor. I probably wasn’t bleeding in my brain, but the standard of care is always to err on the side of caution, so they arranged to put me on an AirEvac helicopter to fly me to Mercy Hospital OKC.
I have long been a subscriber to AirMedCare Network (medical helicopter insurance,) which can seem like something that you “will never use,” but just one incident can put you in that situation, so I was very glad to have the coverage.
I was in a cervical collar the whole time, also my first time ever. It was very uncomfortable.
An additional CT scan later in the evening showed I did not have any bleeding in my brain.
As my shock and awe wore off, my pain level increased. I asked for Tylenol, which helped some, but later in the night, the offered me hydromorphone (Dilaudid), which was not very effective, and gave me modestly nightmarish dreams. They also offered me oxycodone, which I declined. We later switched to hydrocodone (Norco), which was also not very effective. I would say that I was lucky my injuries were such that I didn’t have a huge amount of pain, so by my trip home, Tylenol provided adequate pain relief.
Social Media, Community and Family
As the night in the hospital progressed, I was unable to sleep, mostly due to the c-collar preventing me from sleeping on my side (which I always have to), so Robert and I talked all night, mostly about photography. He got some rest in one of those awkward hospital recliners. He ended up driving me home, so from start to finish, he was a totally stand-up friend. He also made a few hundred images of the incident.
Of course, there was the snowstorm of “get well” wishes on social media, and a dozen or more phone calls, all of which were greatly appreciated.
My sister drove from New Orleans to sit with me, make sure I stayed healthy, and, especially, cook for me. We binge-watched movies, and talked and talked. We had a great time together.
I’ve apparently lived a charmed life, because this is the worst injury I have ever received, and it certainly could have been a lot worse.
As I write this, I am back at work. I had the staples removed from head. I remain sore, but I am recovering nicely.
Finally, I don’t spend time on regret, and while we all hopefully use caution and smart practices, I don’t want to imply that we should be overly risk averse. Everything we do harbors an element of risk, from driving to work to extreme sports. We take care of ourselves and each other, and do our best to get through this amazing and sometimes surprising life.
