LONG WAIT FOR HELP

Taranaki Daily News, 28 December 1934, Page 3

LONG WAIT FOR HELP

INJURED MAN’S ORDEAL. LEAP FROM BOLTING HORSE.’ I Hastings, Dec. 26. Tormented by heat and thirst and the pain of a broken leg and dislocated shoulder, a young man, Mr. Ronald Wahl, was forced to lie out in the open for 12 hours after being thrown against a tree from a runaway horse on Sunday. The young man, who was employed on Messrs. Stratford Brothers’ property at Flemington, left for a ride early on Sunday morning. He rode bareback and travelled toward the country at the back of his employers’ property. When he had gone some distance the horse bolted and made straight for a tree, beyond which was a sheer drop. The rider jumped off, but as he did so the horse swerved and threw him against the tree with such force that he suffered a broken thigh and dislocated shoulder. As his employers thought he had gone to spend the day with a friend Mr. Wahl was not missed, and it was not until evening, when another young man from an adjoining property called to see him, that anxiety was felt for his safety. A search was instituted. The injured man was found at 10 o’clock that night lying in a gully, where he had crawled to try to reach some shade. An ambulance and Dr. C. Raymond were summoned from Waipukurau, but it was not possible to drive right to the scene of the accident owing to the rough country. Dr.. Raymond rode about three miles on horseback to reach the man, then set his injured leg and shoulder. Before he could be moved a stretcher had to be improvised, and on this Mr. Wahl was carried across the rough ground to where the ambulance was waiting. The journey was difficult, but it was accomplished by a party of 12 willing helpers, who carried the stretcher in relays. Mr. Wahl was placed in the ambulance and taken to the Waipukurau public hospital. He is stated to be making satisfactory progress.