A North Carolina man’s attempt take a better photo in Montana’s Glacier National Park turned into a 120-foot, near-death plunge down a cliff into a stream as well as a ride down “a set of waterfalls.”
Amazingly, Ken Nurse, 60, survived the accident because of a good Samaritan who found him in the stream, according to authorities.
Nurse fell into McDonald Creek after stepping a little too close to the edge of an overlook last week, according to NonStop Local Montana, an affiliate of both ABC and Fox.
He was visiting the park with his wife, family, and friends when the incident occurred.
Nurse was rescued by an unidentified bystander after the good Samaritan spotted him lying motionless face down in the stream.
The bystander pulled Nurse to shallower water and began chest compressions after he realized Nurse was not breathing, the Two Bear Air Rescue’s helicopter search-and-rescue team reported in its Facebook post.
Luckily, there was a ranger close by who radioed in for rescue service. After he was aided by the good Samaritan, park rangers tended to Nurse in the middle of the creek as the rescue chopper arrived to secure him and hoist him up, according to various reports.
Video of the chopper rescue was later picked up by several news outlets.
The rescue chopper transported Nurse to a waiting medical helicopter for further stabilization and a trip to the hospital, the Facebook post said.
Ken Nurse’s wife, Renae, told the Montana news outlet that the group had stopped near McDonald Falls to take photos before she returned to the car to warm up.
Renae told the Montana news outlet that the trip was a regular one for them because Ken was originally from Helena, MT, though they now live in North Carolina.
“We made it to McDonald Falls and it was so clear. It’s so pretty. And we all got out, got our pictures and everything that we wanted,” Renae said.
However, as Nurse moved closer to the edge for a better view the ground beneath him gave way, causing the sudden plunge.
Nurse was hospitalized in Kalispell in the northwestern part of the picturesque state.
He spent two days on a ventilator and suffered multiple cracked ribs as well as a compound fracture in his elbow.
But he survived.
“We commend the quick action of the bystander whose actions saved the victim’s life,” the rescue organization wrote in its post.
Nurse agreed.
“I just want everyone who helped me out to get the things they deserve. Because I should not be here right now,” he told NonStopLocal in a phone interview from the hospital. “I owe everyone my life and I want that to be known.”
Breitbart contributor Lowell Cauffiel is the best-selling author of the Los Angeles crime novel Below the Line and nine other crime novels and nonfiction titles. See lowellcauffiel.com for more.
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