Whitewater Rescues

Whitewater Rescues: True Stories of Survival, Bravery, and Quick Thinking          

by Charlie Walbridge

Menasha Ridge Press, 2024, 360 pages

A Carolina Paddler Book Report from Two Perspectives:  Bill Moore and Jeff Hatcher

Jeff Hatcher review:  As an American Whitewater member (and if you aren’t you should stop here and join before finishing this sentence), I have found Charlie Walbridge’s quarterly summaries are instructive in how people get injured and die on rivers. Many of these incidents are due to people who are in over their heads, have bad equipment or just don’t use their equipment (wear your PFD!). A few are none of the above and show how even very skilled boaters can get into difficult situations quickly.

Mr. Walbridge has taken these decades of accounts from the people who survived and compiled them into a book. The individual accounts are written by people who were involved first-hand in the events. The book is instructive and is neatly broken into sections such as the early years of paddling, pins and entrapments, paddlers helping other paddlers and working with first responders.

Walbridge has a section within each chapter which describes how events could have been prevented and then has a chapter at the end which summarizes these safety concepts. These “Charlie’s Insights” cover things such as paddling alone, how to deal with a weak link, roles in a rescue and keys to an evacuation.

The book has a variable writing style. Each section is written by the victim or responder for the incident and has a unique quality.  They range in size from a few paragraphs to multi-page descriptions with multiple points of view.

What can you learn from this book? The last chapter has a good summation of the major points from the chapters. Depending on how long you’ve been boating, a lot of these ideas will feel familiar. The book also includes the AW safety code and an explanation of terms.

If you’ve taken a safety class, this won’t be your bible. However, it might provide some interesting reading. And illustrate the importance of boating with a group of people who are safety-trained and safety-conscious. And maybe a bit lucky.

Jeff Hatcher is a doctor living in Greensboro.  He began paddling in Kentucky and has gained experience through numerous trips and classes since then. Jeff is a proud “Club-boater,” the current CCC Membership Chair and a frequent contributor to Carolina Paddler.

Bill Moore review: “Rescue missions beat the hell out of recovery missions. Be safe out there.” – Steve Ruth reporting on“Nighttime Rescue of Boys Stuck in Tree in Kentucky,” p. 221.

Whitewater carnage stories and videos are mesmerizing, scary, and prolific. A Google search produces almost 37,000 articles and videos in a third of a second. A YouTube search produces scads of entertaining and instructive videos. You can watch until you’re worn out… and you’ll probably learn something worthwhile. Flips, swims, pins, near-foot entrapments, and more “real life on the river” will make you learn faster and more deeply, and will make you wiser and more cautious, as will water-based River Safety and Rescue classes.

Then there’s the extraordinary American Whitewater Accident Database online. You can pull up dangerous accidents, including near-deaths and deaths, in a variety of categories: from year, country, and state to accident type, cause, injury, and victim name… plus others. Much to learn here too. How did all this illuminating accident data get accumulated at American Whitewater? Where and when did it start?

Charlie Walbridge–a mover and shaker in the whitewater safety community for almost 50 years and a CCC member–began the database after he witnessed a foot entrapment death in 1975 at the Icebreaker Slalom competition in southern New York. He discovered there was no pooled information about whitewater accidents, so he started writing and encouraging accident reporting in the American Whitewater Journal. At the present time there are nearly 2300 American Whitewater database entries online.

To inspire awareness, knowledge, and training Walbridge has now used the database to assemble a collection of insightful, thought-provoking, sometimes tear-jerking accounts in his new 360-page book, “Whitewater Rescues: True Stories of Survival, Bravery, and Quick Thinking.” It’s a powerful and instructive book, very absorbing and worthwhile and chock full of amazing tales.

Example – On July 19, 1997, two experienced whitewater paddlers on the Lower Youghiogheny in western Pennsylvania found a girl stuck between Snaggletooth Rock and a boulder, pinned facing downstream, her hips wedged, barely keeping her head above water, exhausted and crying. One of the paddlers found a boulder from which to throw a rope; the other positioned his kayak below the girl in order to counsel and encourage the girl, and to provide safety. She finally found the courage to grab the rope. The thrower could not see her from his position but he could feel a tug on the line. Then the rope went slack. Another tug, slack again, a weak pull, slack. Someone yelled the girl was swimming. She had gotten free, let go of the rope, had been swept over a drop, and had disappeared. She seemed gone… when suddenly her hand came up out of the water and grabbed the safety kayakers bow. A ducky helped transport the girl to the sunny side of the river, where she could begin warming. She and a couple of friends had been rafting a rental boat when they flipped. The others had gotten to shore. Despite lacerations from knees to hips, the girl, Lisa, recovered, and her group proceeded down the river, with the kayakers escorting and advising them to use “guided rafting” in the future. – summary of report by Bill Robinson, pp. 55-57

Chapter 1 in the book, “The Early Years,” traces some interesting history about the development of whitewater paddling along with increasingly sophisticated equipment that encouraged riskier kayaking adventures, plus death-defying rescues from critical accidents. There are seven more chapters that range from “Bad Swims and Near Drownings” and “Pins and Entrapments” to “Injuries, Resuscitations, and Evacuations” and “Accidents at Waterfalls.”

Chapter 8, “How to Stay Out of Trouble on Whitewater,” reassures paddlers that despite frightening accidents and some casualties, overall whitewater kayaking is a safe sport if kayakers practice, develop skills, take precautions, and use good gear. Reminders include wearing a PFD, not paddling alone, preparing for cold water, being aware of potential hazards, knowing emergency services phone numbers and potential evacuation routes off the river, and almost never giving up on a rescue.

Further tips include to avoid starting runs late in the day, to keep paddling gear in good shape, to check all safety gear, to practice with throw bags and other rescue skills, and to remember the powerful importance of encouraging the victim while determined rescue attempts are taking place. Walbridge offers his tips, “Charlie’s Insights,” in sidebars throughout the book, helping to highlight safety issues that arise from the rescue cases. The Appendix section includes the very useful “Safety Code of American Whitewater.”

Charlie Walbridge’s “Whitewater Rescues” deserves a spot on every whitewater kayaker’s bookshelf. It’s an extraordinary compendium of dramatic accident cases, smart rescue solutions, and whitewater safety wisdom.

Example  – On July 18, 2011, a group of four advanced whitewater paddlers decided to run the Class V Oh Be Joyful creek near Crested Butte, Colorado. They were all familiar with the creek, but at the 6 foot Old Growth Drop, Chris’s kayak got pinned in the falls and disappeared. His kayak pitoned and the boat wedged tight. Chris’s spray skirt imploded but when he tried to exit his left foot was caught in the kayak. The creek pummeled his head and back; all Chris could do was push his upper body up and lock his elbows to create an air pocket. He could not grasp ropes that were thrown to him, or he would lose his air pocket, and his foot was stuck anyway. His fellow paddlers tried single-rope live bait tactics to reach the boat but no go. The group then set up a V-lower ropes system across the creek to achieve more stability and access but still no success. Chris’s air pocket was shrinking; he was getting cold and weak. Suddenly Chris was out of the boat somehow and the others were helping, despite the fierce rush of the river, to free his stuck leg. They floated him to shore and changed him into dry clothes, as the local Search and Rescue squad arrived and got him to the hospital. It had been a grueling, scary 30 minutes under water – with Chris’s life in the balance – but Chris suffered trauma to the stuck left leg only, and he went home that night. – summary of report in The Crested Butte News, pp. 171-172

Some related, scary, inspiring rescue videos:

https://vimeo.com/68476394  “Oh Be Joyful Creek a Pinned Kayaker and Rescue – Chris Goodnough” This grueling 40 minute video shows the desperate rescue in Example #2 above.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGwFrJLFefg&t=23s  “Nancy Pin Rescue – Bill Durr” This extraordinary brief rescue video is similar to Example #2 above.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9jXEZZtGW4  “This Is How You Swim Rapids, Whitewater 101 – Boreal River” Actually a succinct overview summary of various self-rescue swimming techniques… more than you’d expect.

Bill Moore is a Novice/Intermediate paddler. He taught English at Greensboro Day School for 33 years, did freelance writing about music for the Greensboro News & Record and co-authored the book,  “Ampeg: The Story behind the Sound” about the company that pioneered bass amps and reverb amps.