‘Lucky’ to be alive after 20m cliff fall
Snowboarder’s brush with death just one of thousands of accidents costing ACC up to $22 million a year, writes Liam Cavanagh.
Ryan McKinstry is lucky to be alive after a snowboarding accident on Mt Ruapehu where he careened off a 20m cliff before hitting ice.
The Wellington-based butcher broke his arm just below the shoulder joint, his forearm, cracked three of his ribs, has a minor break in his back and a broken ankle.
‘‘I’m lucky to be alive. I was traversing across the hillside, and it wasn’t anything dangerous but I didn’t realise that I was on a whole sheet of ice,’’ he said.
‘‘I couldn’t get the board in the snow, and I kept going faster and faster as this cliff was coming up.’’
The 25-year-old, who has been snowboarding for three years, said he went into ‘‘panic mode’’ during the incident on August 17.
‘‘I suppose I was scared, but I was like, ‘f..., what am I going to do?’ As soon as I hit the ground, I couldn’t breath and I thought that was it.’’
He had to be airlifted from Turoa ski field to Hamilton Hospital by the Taranaki Community Rescue Helicopter, and the crew made the ordeal seem ‘‘real calm’’.
McKinstry was later airlifted to Wellington Hospital before being discharged on Friday. He will spend at least six weeks in a wheelchair while he recovers.
His accident is one of many incidents on the slopes in the 2016 ski season.
Yesterday, two skiers were rescued by helicopter after falls on Canterbury ski fields.
A woman at the Porters ski area fell, dislocating her shoulder and injuring her knee. At Mt Olympus, a man suffered a suspected broken arm in a fall.
About 4842 claims have been filed with ACC so far in 2016, with more than $10 million paid out.
In 2015, about 14,741 claims amounting to $22m were made, and just over $20m was paid out in 2014.
But serious injuries like Ryan McKinstry’s are on the decline according to ski fields and helicopter rescue outfits.
An ACC spokeswoman said the increase in claims was because more people were taking up skiing
I suppose I was scared, but I was like, ‘f..., what am I going to do?’. As soon as I hit the ground, I couldn’t breath and I thought that was it. Ryan McKinstry
and snowboarding. But the number of claims was small compared to other sports-related claims, such as rugby.
Most injuries were minor, such as bruising and sprains, she said. On average about 13,500 claims were generated each year.
Mt Ruapehu safety and environmental risk manager Andy Hoyle said he too saw a decline in injuries.
‘‘Nationally the trend is down on the last 10 years,’’ he said.
Because of Ruapehu’s location, rescue helicopters were up there on a regular basis because it was faster and cheaper to transfer people off a mountain.
Canterbury West Coast Air Rescue Trust chief executive Christine Prince said it had attended about 500 accidents so far this year, but none had been ‘‘real serious’’.
Roughly $200,000 had been spent on ski and snowboarding related accidents in the past three years, with figures remaining ‘‘pretty consistent’’ each year.
Costs were slightly down this season, because of a downward trend in serious accidents. And 90 per cent of people that are airlifted to hospital are discharged the next day, she said.
The rescue helicopters were mostly funded by the community, including ski fields such as Mt Hutt, which also invited skiers to make donations to the service, she said.
The trust completed significant planning and preparation work with ski fields this year to promote safe snow-related activities, from wearing the right gear to watching out for ice.
Otago Rescue Helicopter Trust manager Ken Franklin said the month of July had been "certainly quieter" compared to last year.
At the end of its financial year ending June 2016, flying hours were up 30 per cent on the previous year, Franklin said.
He did not wish to disclose total costs for the year until the trust’s annual meeting in September, but said operation costs overall were up significantly, putting a heavy strain on resources.
The trust dedicated a second aircraft full time to the service, with a third as a back up, but finding qualified medical and flight crew was not easy, he said.
‘‘Having three aircraft in the air at once ... that’s quite a challenge.’’