Girl nearly dies in a field??

[Gary]

I have seen a young soldier go down with hypothermia is conditions even less extreme, the guy was fit and healthy, correctly dressed but we were on apatrol in NI in January and we had cold wind, heavy rain. He simply slowly slipped into a hyperthermic state.

He was casi-vacced and the doctors put it down to lack of fuel (he had missed evening tea the night before and breakfast) and a lack of warm fuel (a hot brew) while out on the ground and a dear John letter from his girlfriend.

Equally I, and many others, have survived in typical conditions which should have guarnteed it.

Never underestimate Hyperthermia its doesnt do text book scenerios.

That sounds fishy to me. A young healthy person, even inadequately clad, should not have succumbed so close to safety in familiar territory. The things that might get a person into trouble so close to 'home' would be:
a) disorienting occurrence, such as a complete white-out blizzard.
b) fall into frigid water.
c) other disabling accident.
d) alcohol/drugs.
e) medical trauma (e.g., heart attack, stroke, epilepsy, diabetes, etc.).

Sometimes, even the 'wrong' clothing can save one's life. There was a case (probably over 20 years ago now) where motorists where stranded by a sudden blizzard (in Scotland, somewhere, as I recall). One was a commercial traveller in ladies' underwear. He kept hypothermia at bay until he was rescued by wrapping himself in scores and scores of tights and various skimpy undergarments.

I trust everyone keeps spare warm and waterproof clothing; gloves; woolly hats; wellies; tow rope; jump leads; torch; etc. in their cars at this time of the year?

Burnt Ash

Hyperthermia is a creeping death which will always catch the cocky or the unaware thats what makes it the NO1 killer of outdoors folk!

 

[jakunen]

Gary, very well said.

Even worse when the patient was a trained by the military and was a medic.

One symptom I've come across several times is that they tend to get very belligerent, and do everything they shouldn't - smoke, drink alcohol, and when you point out the fact that the SADF tought them NOT to let a patient with hypothermia do these things...

Plus when too many people try to help you help the patient, no-one seems to understand why the patient is getting aggressive and telling everyone "LOOK I'M FINE NOW go away! ALRIGHT!!!", or why you get hashed off with peopel trying to be 'helpful' and are winding up your patient...

Ok, rant over, just touched a painful memory...

 

[Burnt Ash]

I've just read in our local rag about a 17 year old girl who while walking home on a route I know well (along a couple lanes, cross a field, follow the stream for a hundred yards and back onto the road again),

What sort of distance/journey time are you talking about here, Arctic Hobo? What were the prevailing conditions?
I do realise that individual responses to exposure differ considerably and that when proper hypothermia sets in, the effects can overtake one very rapidly ...but you still have to reach that state. Full immersion in icey water will get you there in a minute or two (heat being sucked out of every square centimetre of body surface). Rainy wet and cold wind (wind chill) takes considerably longer (Ray Mears Extreme Survival Series 1 or 2 'Rocky Mountains' episode). Dry cold, still air will take longer yet. For an ordinarily well-nourished person, I doubt that missing one meal would make very much difference unless that person was being well stretched.
It just seems odd to me that a teenage girl (even in skimpy disco gear) couldn't manage a mile or two getting home on a cold night without getting into that degree of trouble. That is, unless conditions were absolutely atrocious or some other factor(s) was/were involved.

Anyone read Escape Alone, by David Howarth?

Burnt Ash

 

[arctic hobo]

I have, but in it's "We Die Alone" (from Pascal's on mourra seul) format. The second edition. I have also seen the Norwegian film Ni Liv (Nine Lives) of the story. Both are amazing. In fact, you may be interested that I'm organising an expedition following Jan's route in 2006: have a look at http://www.bushcraftuk.net/community/showthread.php?p=60684
The conditions were fine, it's a ten minute walk. It was chilly, but no frost. I think it is no freak accident: I'm just amazed that it is so easy to happen :?:

 

[Burnt Ash]

The conditions were fine, it's a ten minute walk. It was chilly, but no frost. I think it is no freak accident: I'm just amazed that it is so easy to happen :?:

If that's true, then it sounds fishy to me. You don't get hypothermic in ten minutes on a 'chilly' evening in 'fine' conditions in Devon, unless something odd is going on externally or internally.

Burnt Ash

 

[Rod]

The warning signs of hypothermia go a long way to explain how she could collapse so close to safety. Once hypothermia sets in, action needs to be taken to get warm. If the ability to get warm isn't available, either through circumstance, lack of ability, or both, you can pretty much kiss your behind goodbye unless there are people with you that know what to do.

Really useful article RA - thanks.

Re: We Die Alone - David Howath

Hi BA,

Found this book really amazing. His will power to survive was awesome. It just goes to show how much your frame of mind influences the outcome of the situation you are in.

Have a happy & safe New Year

 

[Keith_Beef]

Sometimes, even the 'wrong' clothing can save one's life. There was a case (probably over 20 years ago now) where motorists where stranded by a sudden blizzard (in Scotland, somewhere, as I recall). One was a commercial traveller in ladies' underwear. He kept hypothermia at bay until he was rescued by wrapping himself in scores and scores of tights and various skimpy undergarments.

Many a fisherman, according to one I knew, would get the wife to buy him a couple of pairs of tights (I think our American friends call these "panty hose"), because they are very good for keeping your legs warm. I think that the holes in the weave trap air, which your body heat warms; this creates an insulating layer between your outer layers of clothing and your skin.

And I remember once when I was small, being out with my mother and my very young brother (about a year old, maybe) on a walk in a park. The temperature dropped, the wind got very strong, so my mother wrapped my brother in a couple of pairs of tights (being in a pushchair, he wasn't keping himself warm through exercise.


Keith.

 

[jakunen]

Completely true! Many match fisherman and specimen guys do that. When I used to fish matches a lot of did it. We were of the opinion that it was better to FEEL a bit of a prat wearing them, than to BE a prat and suffer hypothermia.Mind you I've never seen them for sale in a tackle shop...:?:

 

[Skippy]

the question remains, wot was she doing before she went into the field??,
did she wait around for friends to turn up before hand or wait for a bus that did not turn up??, in which case hypothermia may well have started to set in long before she got to the field.

 

[Skippy]

well this thread seems to have died a death (gone cold, caught hypothermia even)

 

[Wayne]

Hi

Can someone point me in the right direction to get the most current information on the treatment of severe hypothermia. Especially reguarding the use of CPR. I have read some accounts that suggest you should not start CPR due to CF. I have also read that you should start CPR.

 

[Skippy]

any medical link on the internet should give you a good guide to hypothermia, but it should be remembered that cpr should only be used if patient has stopped breathing, then this becomes the first priority, the hypothermia becomes the second priority, until breating is restored, then the normal treatment for hypothermia again takes 1st priority.

 

[Skippy]

a good link to start with is:

http://www.ehow.com/how_6318_treat-severe-hypothermia.html

hope this is of some use.

 

[Wayne]

I am looking for some current research into cpr and hypothermia. After Drop and Ventricular Fibrillation are serious problems. As you all know not everything you read online is current and correct. Thanks for the link though.