SSAA NSW

AHN Corner I was aware of the situation I was in. It was 1pm on Saturday, I lived alone and would not be missed until I did not turn up for work in Sydney on Monday. The pain came and went in waves, and certainly provided time to ponder my life. As the sun settled in the west, it started cooling down, and for what little good it did I tried to scrape dirt against my body to preserve the heat. The night was long and cold. All I had on was joggers, trousers and a polo shirt. they stuck me full of needles, cut my clothes off and wrapped me in a reflective blanket. Placed into intensive care, I remember waking and seeing the careworn face of mum, 83 and not needing this. My pulse rate was 180+ and I was seriously ill. They wanted to amputate my right arm at the elbow but did not think I would survive the surgery. All day Sunday thirst started to bite. Even though I knew I was miles from a road, I could not help calling out for help whenever I heard a sound all the while the thought of foxes and pigs finding me was also on my mind. I thought that in order to have any chance of rescue, I would have to hold on until Monday. Another sunset, another freezing night, my lips were cracked and bleeding and I could feel my heart thundering away. My attempts to dig or pull my arm out were unsuccessful and very painful. Meanwhile, at home, the kids tried to ring me on Sunday but there was no answer. On the Monday morning, my daughter dropped round with my granddaughter to drop off a card, realised my trailer was not there, came into the house, and saw that my work bag was there and I had obviously not gone to work. At 0800 on Monday 5 September 2011 she rang work and they were just starting to worry, I am normally there at 0600. She rang my brother in law who lives at Blacktown and told him I was missing. He rang his next door neighbours and they drove down to my camp site, and reported that I was not there, but had probably gone for a shot. Meanwhile my daughter, her boyfriend and grandchildren had headed west to look for me. The neighbours were asked to go back and on a second scout spotted my Pajero. It was about 1100 on the Monday when I heard them walking up the hill. When they saw me, I was alert enough to not let them get me out from under the tree, I was aware of the risk of toxic shock from the blood in my trapped arm. While one stayed with me, the other went for help. The ambulance and rescue squad were called for, and I remember the policeman coming down, looking at me and calling for a chopper. I do not remember how they got me from under the tree, but remember lying on a spine board whilst Sporting Shooters Association of Australia (NSW) Inc. After a variety of tests it was determined I had a fractured skull, 3 broken ribs on my right side that had punctured my lung, chipped bones in my right shoulder, chipped bones in my right elbow, massive crush injuries in my right hand. I had an incised wound under my left rib cage, a T12 spine fracture, severe pressure wounds on my right thigh, left calf and left heel. As the days went by there was doubt if I would ever walk again. But as soon as a spine brace was acquired, start exercising I did. After 4 weeks in Orange, I was transferred back to Penrith for rehabilitation. During my stay I showed a physio a picture in a gun magazine of a person standing, shooting unsupported, and said that we needed to work to restore this functionality. My right shoulder was frozen and I could not raise my arm much past the waist. 16

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