Inside a 100-person rescue on Shortoff Mountain
Rescue crews stabilize injured climber Jacob Gregory at Shortoff Mountain on Sunday, Aug. 30.
A Blackhawk helicopter from the North Carolina Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team approaches a rescue site at Shortoff Mountain on Sunday, Aug. 30.
A climbing accident on Aug. 30 drew 100 first responders from 24 agencies to Shortoff Mountain as part of a complex helicopter rescue effort, highlighting not only how quickly things can go wrong in the wilderness, but the volume of human effort it takes to rescue people in Burke County’s rugged terrain.
The climber in Sunday’s incident was identified as Jacob Gregory, a Morganton contractor, who was climbing the “Dopey Duck” route in the morning with his son, Jonah, when he fell an estimated 15-20 feet and struck a rock outcropping, according to multiple sources.
Gregory sustained life-threatening injuries, and after an hours-long helicopter extraction, was taken to Atrium Carolinas Medical Center in Charlotte. He underwent emergency surgery that night, according to a GoFundMe page posted by his family. According to his family, Gregory sustained multiple injuries, including multiple rib fractures, a broken and dislocated sternum, broken tailbone, multiple broken vertebrae in his back, disc herniations, and a major injury to his spinal cord. As of Thursday, more than $49,000 had been raised for his recovery.
Wes Calkins, owner of Appalachian Climbing School based in Western North Carolina, said the Dopey Duck is one of many strenuous and technical climbing routes in the gorge that attract climbers from all over the region.
“The climb is relatively vertical and demanding,” he said. “There are even sections where it is overhanging and you could fall off at many points.”
Wes Taylor, chief of Burke Search and Rescue, said it was “an accident that could happen to anyone.”
“It’s inherently dangerous,” Taylor said, “but (climbers) also take every precaution possible. With the thousands of climbers every year that climb in the Linville Gorge, the number of folks who we have to rescue is fairly minimal.”
Of the approximately 100-120 search-and-rescue efforts Burke SAR conducts per year, well over half are in the gorge, according to Taylor. Only a few are climbers. Most often, he said, it is hikers from nearby larger cities who underestimate the gorge’s steep terrain and overestimate their capabilities.
“We end up with a lot of folks who come from out of town and think it’s any other park or forest,” he said. “These folks are used to a gravel path, and we’re far from that in the Linville Gorge.”
Dehydration, low blood sugar, and exhaustion are common among the rescued, especially on steep hikes that are deceptively easy on the way down and incredibly strenuous on the way up.
Burke County Public Information Officer Chris White said it takes first responders a minimum of 45 minutes just to reach most trailheads in the gorge. Once officials arrive, the steep terrain, thick brush, unpredictable weather patterns, and fluctuating water levels all add more time.
“When you’re laying on the side of the mountain hurt, injured, or lost, it can feel like an eternity,” he said.
Helicopter operations come with their own set of challenges, according to Justin Graney, communications chief at the North Carolina Emergency Management Agency.
Rapidly changing elevations, dense vegetation, and limited landing areas combine to make navigation and extraction incredibly challenging.
“Communication between the pilots, crew chiefs, and rescue technicians is so important,” he said.
Patchy cell service is another obstacle. On Sunday, responders were able to locate Gregory accurately with GPS data from his son’s phone, but coverage is not reliable everywhere in the gorge, said Taylor.
In any rescue effort, especially complex operations requiring helicopter evacuation, coordination is key, White said. Fortunately for those in distress, that coordination often takes only minutes.
“Any incident that starts in North Carolina begins on the county level,” said White. “It’s up to the county and local Emergency Management Agency manager to facilitate what he needs to make the extrication work in any type of scenario, whether it’s a helicopter, rope crew, whatever the resource is.”
While Burke Search and Rescue and other emergency crews are mobilizing, White said, the request for resources goes from the Burke County Emergency Management Agency to the North Carolina Emergency Management Agency for state-level support.
In Sunday’s rescue, Burke County requested helicopter assistance, and the North Carolina Helicopter Aquatic Rescue Team responded with a Blackhawk crewed by Charlotte Fire Department personnel.
Social media was afire with praise throughout the week for the first responders who made Sunday’s rescue a success, particularly Will Soper, a 28-year-old volunteer who ran a bag of blood from the Wolfpit Trailhead all the way up the mountain and down a steep gully to the rescue scene, according to Taylor.
Taylor said while Soper’s actions were heroic, Burke SAR’s volunteers are all required to pass incredibly strenuous physical tests and training, so they are “able to perform in those types of environments.”
Taylor described the average volunteer as viciously fit, competitive, and passionate about the outdoors.
“I’ll always be impressed at some of these guys’ strength and longevity,” he said. “They can go for days and not complain ... You kind of have to be a glutton for punishment.”
The thrill of adventure combined with a desire to help others is what draws people to search and rescue, Taylor said.
“It’s an adventure for us,” he said. “To be able to help people while we do it is the icing on the cake.”
The resounding message from officials was this: If you are going into the wilderness, be prepared.
White said even if an excursion is only planned for a couple of hours, you should at least take enough food and water for a full day, especially when you are navigating the Linville River or other waterways in the higher reaches of the county, since water levels can rise rapidly when it rains.
Taylor said something as simple as a twisted ankle could easily turn into an overnight stay in the gorge.
If you’re unprepared and need help, Burke County’s rescue crews are ready to help.
Case in point: As crews were cleaning up the rescue scene at Shortoff Mountain and preparing to withdraw after the helicopter left, a call came in from South Mountains State Park, where a man had fallen from a waterfall and sustained a head injury, White said.
Emergency responders went from one rescue to the next in the blink of an eye.
“When we get a 911 call, we’re ready,” White said.
