PLB Activated When Hunter Falls 4 Meters

Home

/

Survivor Stories

/

PLB Activated When Hunter Falls 4 Meters

PLB Activated When Hunter Falls 4 Meters
Lives saved

1

Hunting

Hunting

Forest

Forest

Mountain

Mountain

Medical emergency

Medical emergency

Normal conditions

Normal conditions

Hunting

PLB Activated When Hunter Falls 4 Meters

-38.964814154638°S, 175.44103307451°E

Posted on April 12, 2023 by Trevor

What happened?

Trevor is an experienced hunter in New Zealand, with over 50 years hunting experience under his belt. 

In July 2022 Trevor, his son Nick, grandson Seb, and friend Neil headed into the Tongariro Forest in Central North Island for a weekend hunt. The group had been hunting during the day with no luck, however their luck changed when Nick shot a young stag that evening.

The group located the stag and began to carry it back to camp in darkness. During the walk back to camp Trevor became separated from the group. 

Trevor became disorientated in the dark thick bush, losing his sense of direction. Whilst making his way through the bush, Trevor stepped into a well-hidden crevasse which was about 4 meters deep. 

Trevor fell into the crevasse, hitting his head on a tree growing at the bottom. He sustained extensive life-threatening injuries to his head, which included massive brain bleeding, multiple skull fractures and a broken neck. Trevor was unconscious and unable to respond or call for help. 

Nick and Neil began became very concerned as Trevor failed to return to camp and began searching. Trevor was located laying in the crevasse unresponsive and needing urgent medical attention. 

Nick immediately activated his ACR ResQLink PLB which sent a signal to the rescue center. 

A search and rescue team, along with a rescue helicopter, were swiftly dispatched. Within an hour, the helicopter arrived to assist Trevor. Meanwhile, the bright flashing light from the ACR PLB guided the medic, who was subsequently winched down from the helicopter. As soon as the medic reached Trevor, they quickly began providing life-saving care.

Trevor endured 8 long hours in the freezing crevasse before rescuers airlifted him to safety and rushed him to the hospital. After over a month in critical care, Trevor is recovering well, considering the severity of his injuries. Nick has trusted his ACR ResQLink PLB for peace of mind while hunting for several years.

Then when Nick activated the ACR PLB, he felt immense relief, knowing help was on the way for his father. Trevor’s accident occurred in an isolated and dense bush location 5 hours walk from civilization with no cell phone reception. 

Trevor who is a father, grandfather and husband would not be here with us today if it was not for the ACR PLB.

Words of wisdom

From one hunter to another, Safety first!

Never leave home without your ACR PLB, you just never know when you may need it to save a life!

Thank you note

I just wanted to say a huge thankyou to the ACR team for provided such a valuable piece of life saving equipment.

Without the PLB my father would not be here today. Our family will be for ever grateful.

 

 

 

 

Rescue location

2CPR+3C Ngapuke, Manawatu-Wanganui, New Zealand

Rescue team

Local Search and Rescue

ResQLink™ View Personal Locator Beacon

Go to product details

$464.95$713.95

Small but resilient, the ResQLink View has been professionally engineered and tested to ensure it can withstand even the harshest elements. This buoyant Personal Locator Beacon requires no subscription for use and includes a digital display providing live status and GPS coordinates. Whether on land, at sea, or in the air, trust that the ResQLink’s satellite precision and military durability, put rescue in the palm of your hands.

**Based on test report from an accredited laboratory   WARNING: PROP 65  
Clear
Find a dealer
Trust badge logo Trust badge logo Trust badge logo

ResQLink™ View Personal Locator Beacon saves lives

Survivor Stories

Drone Search Turns Dangerous: Stranded in Rugged Mountains, Dramatic PLB Rescue Ensues

I eventually found a valley that led to the coordinates but there was no obvious route down so it was necessary to explore and route find. Even the best routes down were perilous with numerous slopes of snow, dead ends, dry falls and eventually a dead end ledge overlooking a 100 ft. fall.

Read Full Story

From Hike to Rescue Operation: Teacher's Preparedness and ResQLink PLB Saves the Day

One of the students held the PLB, and we communicated to check if the signal light was flashing. I placed emergency blankets over parent A and a couple of student jackets around him for support. I stayed with my arm supporting his neck, not moving him, suspecting he had broken his femur on one side and either his hip or femur on the other. Later, we found he had broken his femur and dislocated his hip on the opposite side.

Read Full Story