My terrible, horrible, miserable, not so very good day.

[RobertEH]

I find myself working on ladders and the roof solo from time to time. I carry an in-reach Locater beacon with me so that if I should fall, I can summon help. Basically a hikers version of the "help I have fallen and cannot get up" system. Hopefully I would be able to push the button should I be injured to the point where I could not get up/go for help.

inReach® Satellite Communicators | Messengers | Garmin

Stay safe off-the-grid with inReach® satellite communicators. Features include two-way text messaging (satellite subscription required), SOS trigger, and GPS.

discover.garmin.com

 

[Jstpssng]

I find myself working on ladders and the roof solo from time to time. I carry an in-reach Locater beacon with me so that if I should fall, I can summon help. Basically a hikers version of the "help I have fallen and cannot get up" system. Hopefully I would be able to push the button should I be injured to the point where I could not get up/go for help.

inReach® Satellite Communicators | Messengers | Garmin

Stay safe off-the-grid with inReach® satellite communicators. Features include two-way text messaging (satellite subscription required), SOS trigger, and GPS.

discover.garmin.com

I carry one in the woods with me. Every Monday I send an email to myself, then send a return message to the unit. The message to my email includes a map of where it was sent from. For my purposes that doesn't always work that well... if it doesn't have a clear sky it may not work. That may not be the case if sending an SOS.

An interesting tidbit; the first person to send for help with one was a hunter from Pennsylvania who had canoed several miles up a river in New York and was stranded in a massive late fall snowstorm. It took them a while to find him and the helicopter didn't have fuel enough to haul his gear out. He had to leave everything there including an expensive, custom made canoe.. A couple of weeks later he parked about 5 miles away and hiked in to his campsite; only to find his canoe had been stolen. He spent the night in his tent, and activated the beacon again. The SAR teams didn't seem to mind the first time as that's what they are there for. They weren't very happy about the second time, however.

 

[RobertEH]

Yeah - they are not foolproof, but much better than nothing! The messaging is quite nice - I have sent messages from Southern Africa before. I carry it with me on all my hikes/hunts. We have had several of our climbers activate them to initiate SAR. Best story I heard was a guy who slid on some heather in the backcountry and snapped his ankle. Pressed the emergency button and a helocopter was dispatched and arrived 45 min later. Hopefully if I fall while on a ladder I will have line of sight to sky. I carry a cell phone too so between the two I hope to be covered.

 

[Hay Dude]

don't worry everything will pass, sometimes you just need to breathe in and out and everything will pass and everything will heal

Yeah I just read this and I’m thinking to myself “what is he whining about? This is like a monthly occurrence around here”

Crying about a cut on your hand kind of falls on deaf ears.….

 

[Tinhack]

Yeah I just read this and I’m thinking to myself “what is he whining about? This is like a monthly occurrence around here”

Crying about a cut on your hand kind of falls on deaf ears.….

Yeah, working on tractors, equipment, autos and metal machines like a mill, lathe, bender and a punch press can mess up your day in a hurry. I keep a well-stocked First Aid kit in the shop. And I have bottles of NewSkin in every toolbox and my office desk. When you're old like me, the skin tears, cuts and bruises easily. But what I hate the most is getting a little metal sliver in the skin. That reminds you every time you grab something.

 

[Tinhack]

just think if you had a heart attack, you can't get to a hospital fast enough out in the boonies!.. then what?.

I did. I wanted to go to the best hospital in the region. The ambulance techs made me sign a release and a distance up-charge in case I didn't make it. It was about a 40-mile trip. I told them to "turn-up the oxygen and don't spare the horses". After a preliminary check in the ER, the doctor ordered four pints of whole blood. They were squeezing the bags of blood feeding both arms. The next day I got three more pints and a "Roto-Rooter" in both ends to find the leak. They found a bleeding ulcer in my stomach. I made it worse by carrying a heavy machine tool earlier in the day. They said if I had gone to bed that night, I wouldn't have awakened. A couple of days later, they replaced my aortic heart valve. I spent 11 days there encompassing July 4th, 2018. I wasn't allowed to lift more than 5 pounds or drive for several months. It took a couple of years to heal and get back some muscle tone. When you've had your chest split, coughing or sneezing is something you don't look forward to. That was the most painful experience of all. I found out later my heart surgeon was recognized as the best in all of South Texas.

 

[riptides]

I did. I wanted to go to the best hospital in the region. The ambulance techs made me sign a release and a distance up-charge in case I didn't make it. It was about a 40-mile trip. I told them to "turn-up the oxygen and don't spare the horses". After a preliminary check in the ER, the doctor ordered four pints of whole blood. They were squeezing the bags of blood feeding both arms. The next day I got three more pints and a "Roto-Rooter" in both ends to find the leak. They found a bleeding ulcer in my stomach. I made it worse by carrying a heavy machine tool earlier in the day. They said if I had gone to bed that night, I wouldn't have awakened. A couple of days later, they replaced my aortic heart valve. I spent 11 days there encompassing July 4th, 2018. I wasn't allowed to lift more than 5 pounds or drive for several months. It took a couple of years to heal and get back some muscle tone. When you've had your chest split, coughing or sneezing is something you don't look forward to. That was the most painful experience of all. I found out later my heart surgeon was recognized as the best in all of South Texas.

Dang Tinhack, glad for your outcome. Wow.