I'm glad everything worked out for the best. I just can't imagine how the blade didn't just take the guy's head off.

They said the blade was slowing, and since it sagged down it must not have been going fast enough to sever his head off.

Surprising, but I'm sure that he'll have suffered from severe brain damage.

Great story of human kindness and Dr. Kilburn, you are a hero by my definition! I pray for total healing of mind and body to both Kilburn and Stanley. It really does restore your faith in mankind and I'd love to read more stories of such unselfish acts of kindness! Godspeed!

@ cheetah-jerk!

Cheetah is worse than a jerk.

Is that a perversion of the old "I've fallen and I can't get up?" Troll.

You are right. It is a great story. It is amazing what people can do when duty calls..........

This entire story started when the guy's German Shepherd banged into him, as mine does to me daily, especially when she is excited....some years ago, a woman was walking her two GS, stopped to enjoy the cliff-side vista; the two dogs jumped up, apparently being playful, and knocked her over the cliff. Lovely dogs, but can be a handful...

Amazing story... people trying to rescue others often forget about their own safety.

I always prefer to read a good story with a nicer ending.

I hope all are well and I'm sure CHP will be amending their operations manual for where to stand near a helicopter. I'm sure that even the wind catching the blades can cause some rotation and since the blades weigh so much, they can easily knock you off your feet.

Dad ratted 1 percenter rich doctor, where was ows while all this was happening. I am sure they would have done something heroic.

Unselfishness.

Both words exist.

Very impressive. Nice job doc!

MR--please know that NO ONE ever intentionally breaks their leg. I know, believe me, I know. Accidents happen, that's why we have the word "accident."

BTW--Karma bites trolls.

MR - how is he an "idiot"? He was knocked down by a german shepherd.

Read the article. His leg wouldn't have been broken if not for the German Shepherd. I wonder who the dog belonged to.

MR, you don't go outside much do you?

MR, do get a clue; Big Bear is not "remote". The people who respond to emergencies are being paid whether rescuing someone or waiting for a call.

Yes, it was so remote that camp counselors were there hiking with children. Crazy, lunatic, reckless hiking behavior, clearly!

Some states cover the costs by adding a search and rescue fee to hunting, fishing, boating licenses. And in Colorado there is a card you can buy to contribute to the fund if you do not hunt or fish.

Also the American Alpine Club provides $10,000 free rescue insurance with membership and offers life and accident insurance policies.

Why should MR have to pay for a service he does not use? He is upset that he has to pay for public schools, which, he clearly never used.

Why should we all pay for fire departments, when only a minority of homes catch fire. Why should I pay for roads and highways, some of which I never use? Or the military, which I want to use to invade Illinois, but they won't let me.

MR says:

If he wants to go hike a "remote" area, he should put down a deposit of $100,000 in case he needs to be rescued and not shift the burden to the 53% of americans who pay federal/state income taxes.

from the article:

Dr. Jeremy Kilburn, an Air Force pulmonologist and former trauma surgeon in Afghanistan

MR, i'm pretty sure Dr. Kilburn, an Air Force pulmonologist (who serves his country to boot) probably pays more in taxes than you do...

Mr., you have never had an accident? Use your head for something other than to hold your ears up.

MR apparently can not be bothered to actually read the article.

A fortunate accident.

MR - Just in case you wanted to make a bigger fool of yourself, the rescuee Dr Kilburn is a serving active duty military member. As such not only are your tax dollars paying his salary,if for any reason a determination was made that he had financial responsibility for his rescue the charges would then be billed to Tricare. Tricare is the government insurance plan for active duty service members,eligible retired service members and eligible dependents of active duty and retired service members. Yes more of your tax dollars. Plus if any provider of service does not bill Tricare correctly or in a timely manner, the provider takes a loss for the cost of the services...just more for you to pay for MR in higher costs for unpaid bills.

Dr Kilburn, thank you for your service to our fabulous country, to all the military personnel you have cared for, and to Mr Stanley.

I would like to add to what 'medical bills' said above--that since Dr. Kilburn is a pulmonologist and former trauma surgeon, that he could someday wind up working in an ER--and save MR's life!! Now THAT would be poetic justice at it's most forgiving and finest!! So shut up, trolls--the live he saves someday may very well be your own!

sounds better than "No-Mercy Deathatorium," located in Jacksonville, Miss. But it's the only place I can afford to send my ex. Really.

But he can bill them back it would seem!

If he doesn't have a license to practise medicine in California they could charge him with that.

From uslegal.com :

A good samaritan in legal terms refers to someone who renders aid in an emergency to an injured person on a voluntary basis. Usually, if a volunteer comes to the aid of an injured or ill person who is a stranger, the person giving the aid owes the stranger a duty of being reasonably careful. A person is not obligated by law to do first aid in most states, not unless it's part of a job description. However, some states will consider it an act of negligence though, if a person doesn't at least call for help.

Helicopter blades are not rigid. they sag at the ends when the are still, like tree branches. As the blades slowed down, they lowered to head height and hit the man in the head

If he was a trained medivac employee it seems like he would of had enough sense to get out from under the blades. He's the moron not the doctor.

stc, I might say "he made a mistake" versus "he is a moron," but hey, to each his own.

hey you are the moron there stc1993 there is a certain amount of gear you must get out to take with you i belive the article stated they had landed something like 50 yards away from the patient

If you buy a fishing license in Colorado you get insurance for one free rescue, Great deal.

I hate to stir the pot but why should they? We are supposed be to a civilized society, yes? Regardless if there are rescuers, people will still go out there and a few will probably start rescue services themselves when they realize there is a need...all because they have the knowledge and do not want to see someone die when they can make a difference. That is how it generally works...you think people fighting wild fires risk their lives so the rest of us have a place to play? You think wildlife officers protect nature so the rest of us can enjoy it? That is like saying police officers become police officers so they can sit around an eat donuts all day long...

Apache's exactly right. I'm a volunteer EMT with a non profit ambulance squad. Most of the EMT's and paramedics are paid, but the organization itself is a non profit community service. And no one expects to be injured. You can be hurt anywhere. We've rescued kids on ATV's in the woods, so you don't need to go hiking in remote mountains to be hurt!

If the original victim is billed for his rescue, perhaps he should bill for HIS services and come out ahead! LOL.

Seriously, folks, are you billed every time you need police, fire and emergency services? They are provided on a collective basis, and we ALL pay for them every time we pay taxes. (Well, at least I know that I help pay for them; do you pay taxes, or are you a freeloader?)

hey Bob from one volunteer to another thanks for your service sir....and "thatrocks" sadly the answer is yes you are generally billed for emergency services... most people think that thier taxes should cover it but the regular tax check my department gets once a month wouldn't pay to replace the section of hose from the truck to the nozzle to go into your house let alone the hose back to the hydrant or the diesel the truck is burning to pump the water or the $1,500 worth of ppe each guy is wearing, not to mention the truck alone is upwards if not over a quarter mil ...see my point i am not saying that i get pleasur out of charging someone in their time of despair but it is ness. however we will bill your insurance first and 9 times out of 10 they pay us what ever your deductable is and that is the end of the story

Not quite, skilife. It's more of a pooled funding mechanism that helps SAR teams (mostly volunteer) cover expenses. From Alpine Rescue Team's website:

"When you purchase a CORSAR Card, $2 of the $3 price for a one year card and $9 of the $12 price for a five year card goes into the fund. These funds are then used to reimburse county sheriffs and search and rescue teams for actual expenses they may have during a mission. The fund also helps to pay for equipment and training for Colorado's search and rescue teams."

"The COSAR Card is not "insurance" nor is "insurance" needed. Sheriffs and SAR teams do not charge for SAR in Colorado, so never hesitate to call for help...County sheriffs and their search and rescue teams will respond to your emergency whether or not you have a COSAR Card."

A little googling will find you all the details.

He helped the injured rescuer first, then was helped himself...so technically, he was a doctor first and patient second.

Lol oooh now I see :P

At least you went back to read, asked politely, etc...instead of going off the deep end on an unrelated tangent like people usually do here because they refuse to read the entire story. :)

I think your right tanya, he was the patient they were coming after then the guy got hurt & the patient had to be the Dr. to rescue the rescuer. :0)

I agree with you ApacheRose. But there are many heroes if you look around. Firefighters, police, paramedics, doctors, nurses, military, 911 operators and all the ancillary staff that help these heroes do their jobs. Yes they get paid but you have to be a special kind of someone to risk your own life to save somebody else running into a burning building or jumping into the fray and dealing with the gore to save a trauma victim, (they even save people like MR) and to do it on a daily basis. There are many incredible individuals out there, many who are heroes on some level everyday. When I start to lose faith in human kind I think of those folks. There are good people out there, but sometimes you've got to look to find them.

I realize there are plenty of heroes who risk their lives every day. Many go unrecognized and would never want the recognition. I am sorry if my comments seemed to disparage them, because I certainly didn't mean to. I meant it as a compliment to people like that...who choose to act selflessly in the face of adversity. There lots of people who would not act selflessly and if they did do a good deed, quite a few would want recognition.

I didn't mean to make it sound like your remarks disparaged people and I don't think they did. Your first statement was about how things like this restore your belief in your fellow man and I just wanted to share things that help me keep the faith in my fellow humans when I encounter the sh*ty ones. It makes me feel better.

To be fair, the "Cujo" you are referencing might not be a Cujo at all...but rather a balanced pet who happened to get too excited. I would like to know as well, but then people will blame the dog, particularly the breed because they can hurt us.

The dog might have tripped or simply bumped the guy in a way that, on a flat pavement, wouldn't have been a problem at all. Did you ever go hiking? Ever have a dog?

To all of you who wonder about the dog, read the story again!

"Kilburn's leg was injured when his German shepherd, who had joined them for the hike, bumped into him, causing him to land awkwardly, "

I'm glad everyone was rescued.

We have read the story Jane. The story has been updated since some of us have posted and this forum does not allow post edits to reflect that.

That statement is referring to calling for help for Kilburn after he broke his leg, not calling for help for Stanley who was the one injured by the helicopter...

I didnt get that from what was written ApacheRose. I was wondering the same thing about the radios. It specifically stated that Dr. Kilburn enlisted the help of these camp counselers to help load Officer Stanley into the helicopter. He also used one as a "Flight nurse to hold IV bags for Stanley". As if this is all a Flight Nurse does :-/.

Having worked in EMS/Fire/Rescue professionally for over 22 years, it sure seems like they wrote the article to be extra dramatic. They make it sound like putting pressure on a wound and administering oxygen are difficult and only a trained Doctor are capable of doing it. I believe that by law the other crew member has to be at least an EMT basic or First Responder. These are all things he could have done as well. I'm not diminishing the assistance that Dr Kilburn gave. It just seems like they pumped the story up to gain readership. This might explain why Dr Kilburn himself doesnt think it's a big deal. he did what he felt was the rhight thing. I mean really, what were his options? Sit on his ass and whine about his own predicament while Officer Stanley lays there and dies? Officer Stanley needed a trauma center and a trauma team to save his life. He needed rapid transport. This was provided by several people pulling together and working as an impromptu team. People who have a background in saving lives. It doesnt seem too amazing to me. If anything I would say Dr Kilburn is a hero simply by his service as a surgeon who saves our troops.

Kind of disappointed in the article itself. Then again, when have I ever read anything on MSN that somehow didnt make me shake my head and wonder.

I am a trained Rescuer. So this means I'm a hero because I have stopped on countless scenes on my days off and helped render aid till authorities got there? The guy just did what he thought was right.

Grasso...the man hiking with the doctor got the radios from the camp counselors, then enlisted the same people to help get everyone in the helicopter---as both the doctor(who probably was directing things more than anyone else---at least it sounds that way) and the flight medic were injured. To me it was a team effort, not just by Kilburn but everyone. I think the story is trumped up in that sense...if not for everyone involved, Stanley would not have made it out alive.

I questioned too why the pilot chose Fitch out of the three to assist(why would the pilot choose? Why not Kilburn since the story suggests he took charge? Why was the pilot unable to help Stanley? Maybe all she did was hold IVs but maybe someone had the bright sense to bring an extra set of hands along just in case there were other issues). All things that could be better cleared up with solid reporting and I don't doubt the lack of such from MSN. However, from the way the article reads, I gathered the camp radios were used to call for help for Kilburn...which is why the heli was sent out. How would they use the heli radio if it was not there yet? lol.

I agree with the rest of your post. He just did what he felt was right. It doesn't make the incident any less worthy but to all of them for doing what was right in such a situation. As would I and you. But there are lots of people who would have no idea how to act in a given situation, even if their intentions were well placed.

I get what you mean. If he hadn't broken his leg, no rescue would have been necessary and the rescurer wouldn't have been whacked in the back of his head. Just fate.

It's like the chicken and the egg, except it's the hero and the other hero. :)

I am with you Shepherd...however, a German Shepherd in the wrong hands can be a dangerous entity. Not the dog's fault at all but the owner. In fact, just up the street there are two German Shepherds that live about 100ft apart. One is human aggressive and dog aggressive...to the point that his or her owner has trouble controlling him or her on leash. The other is friendly to all creatures and seems like the dog you speak of.

Renee-252019 You need to read the story again. It states very plainly that the dog was HIS dog and that the dog "bumped into him causing him to fall and land awkwardly."

As for the Dr. and his rescuer, I wish them both full and speedy recoveries. They are both heroes.

Renee, The story as it reads now says the dog belonged to the docor and he tripped over it. A plain and simple acccident that probably happens every day around peoples homes. This story got picked up because it has some unique circumstances and I believe it has been updated as more details were found out. At any rate, it's stupid if people are blaming the dog. Unfortunately, s**t happens

I worry of MR & Renee ever have kids. omg.....so dense.

Everyone calling Renee and Shepherd dense should take into consideration the story did not say it was his own dog earlier. Michelle hinted at that already. It just said a dog bumped into him. Regardless, their sentiments were right. There are people out there who always have to have something to blame when there are accidents. It can never just be an accident where a man was bumped into and fell. I know people who---if it was a "pit bull" who knocked the man over(even though there is no such breed), they would be calling for the dog's head. So very pathetic but true.

No such breed as a pitbull? What?

Yes...a pit bull is not a breed. It is a label to encompass a few breeds of dogs, most notably the American Pit Bull Terrier(a true pit bull owner would use this name or say APBT) or the American Staffordshire Terrier. Both of these breeds were essentially the same up until the 1900s. There are other breeds that carry the tell-tale visual looks as a pit bull type dog but they are not "pit bulls" at all. Like the Presa Canario or the Argentine Dogo. There are many breeds, with the ears cropped that can look exactly like a APBT or an Am. Staff. Regardless, lots of people buy into the hype that the dogs are dangerous when APBTs and Am. Staffs are very loyal to their human companions. It is because of that trait that bad owners can turn them into aggressive dogs.

You obviously have no first hand experiance in helos. They do reach a point in their wind-down where a sudden gust of wind can cause them to dip.