As Brandon Garrett became stranded in an Oregon ravine last week, his dog Blue ran through the densely forested area to get help.
Blue, a whippet, ran for almost four miles with a drink in his snout and went to a campsite where they had been before and where Mr Garrett was supposed to meet his friend. The friend, who had been waiting for Mr. Garrett a few hours earlier, knew something was wrong, said Mr. Garrett’s brother, Tyree Garrett.
Blue’s appearance prompted Mr. Garrett’s family and friends to search for him the night of June 2 and the next morning, the Baker County Sheriff’s Office said in a statement. He was found by his brother, who spotted Mr. Garrett’s truck in the ravine and called the sheriff’s office, who rescued Mr. Garrett with the help of other authorities.
Mr. Garrett, 62, was driving in eastern Oregon, near the state’s border with Idaho, when he reached a curve in the road and went over an embankment, the office said of the sheriff.
After the accident, he crawled 100 yards from his truck and spent the night near a stream in the ravine. Photos provided by the sheriff’s office showed a white pickup truck lying on its side in a creek, surrounded by bright green trees and bushes.
Tyree Garrett said he found the truck the morning after looking at areas near the creek that couldn’t be seen from the road. He saw injured dogs lying near the truck and shouted his brother’s name, but got no response.
“It stopped my heart,” Mr. Garrett said. “I just thought, damn, my brother was gone.”
It was pouring rain and it was cold at night, so he didn’t know how his brother could have survived. The ravine was straight and inaccessible without rappelling equipment, he said, so he drove to get reception on his phone and called the sheriff’s office.
Rescuers arrived and heard Mr Garrett calling for help.
Pine Valley Rural Fire Protection District volunteers and U.S. Forest Service employees used chain saws to clear a path for the search and rescue team, which placed Mr. Garrett in a rescue basket. Baker County Search and Rescue connected the basket to ropes, then lifted it off the ground and pulled it across the ravine.
Mr. Garrett was placed in an ambulance and then flown to a nearby hospital.
“He has a cracked ankle and his body itself is really bruised and battered,” Tyree told the New York Times. “So it’s going to take him a while, at his age, to get back on his feet.”
Mr Garrett was traveling with three other dogs found alive nearby, his brother said. One of the dogs had surgery for a broken hip and injured his femur and another broke his leg in two places.
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News Source : www.nytimes.com
