Scott will never forget the moment help arrived.
After what felt like a long time lying injured in the bush, he heard it - the distant beating of rotor blades cutting through the trees. Then he saw Critical Care Flight Paramedic Schalk being winched down toward him.
“The moment he arrived,” Scott says, “I felt safe.”
For months, Scott had been preparing for a long-anticipated family adventure: hiking the Milford Track.
Every week, he and his dad trained on the steep staircases of the Sledge Track, building strength and stamina together. It was their routine. Their goal. Something to look forward to.
But on one recent training hike, just as Scott stepped off a wooden staircase, everything changed.
“I’ve never broken a bone before,” he says. “So of course, I broke two at once.”
He had snapped both bones in his lower right leg.
The pain was instant and overwhelming.
The situation quickly became more frightening. There was no cellphone coverage. No easy way to call for help.
Scott lay there in agony while his dad tried to work out what to do. As he prepared to leave Scott to find cell reception and raise the alarm…
“Three nurses just appeared out of nowhere,” Scott says. “I couldn’t believe it.”
Out on the track by chance, they stepped in without hesitation. They kept Scott calm and warm. They assessed his injury. And using satellite messaging on a phone, they managed to contact emergency services.
Help was on its way.
When the Grassroots Trust Rescue Helicopter crew arrived overhead, getting Scott to a safe winch point wasn’t simple.
He had to be carefully supported up and down steep steps, across uneven ground, and over a swing bridge. A passing army officer on a training hike joined in, offering his strength without a second thought.
It was slow. Painful. Challenging.
Within minutes, he was being winched up through the trees and lifted clear of the bush.
“As I rose above the canopy,” he remembers, “I just felt overwhelming relief.”
Looking back, Scott knows how different the outcome could have been.
“Without the rescue helicopter, I don’t know how anyone could have reached me,” he says. “I’m incredibly grateful.”
What started as a simple training hike became a powerful reminder of how quickly things can change - and how vital it is to have skilled people ready to respond when they do.
For Scott, the sound of rotor blades in the distance will always mean one thing: Help.
Because you never know when you'll need your rescue helicopter. Donate Today > https://give.rescue.org.nz/event/grassroots-trust-rescue-helicopter/donate