It was a normal day on Easter Sunday in 2024 on Stephen’s rural property at Mount Vincent, he was clearing a fallen tree with his tractor while his loyal dog Callie kept watch.
But, as Stephen stepped down from the tractor to check his progress, the tree shifted. A heavy branch slipped from the bucket and swung without warning. It struck Stephen in the head with devastating force, shattering his helmet. He collapsed instantly, unable to move.
There was no one else around, just Callie.
Stephen didn’t know it at the time, but hundreds of metres above the ground, the Westpac Rescue Helicopter’s Tamworth-based chopper had just left the John Hunter Hospital returning west.
Then the call for Stephen’s accident came through. Local NSW Ambulance paramedics were the first to reach Stephen, immediately working on stabilising his neck.
Stephen was conscious. And he knew.
“I think I said to the paramedics, ‘I think I’ve broken my neck’,” he recalled.
It was far worse. Stephen had suffered a craniocervical dissociation, often referred to as an internal decapitation.
Laying there, unable to move, Stephen could feel himself deteriorating.
“I told them, ‘I’m about to stop breathing. I think I’m going to die’.
“I remember lying there thinking this was it… thinking about Noeline, my children and my grandchildren. I thought I wouldn’t be found.”
At this point in the story, you’re probably thinking, well how did the paramedics find Stephen in the first place?
Callie.
“Callie has always been a very motherly dog. She stayed beside me and howled – just made this terrible noise,” Stephen said.
Noeline, Stephen’s wife, heard it from the house.
Without Callie, Stephen may have never been found in time.
In injuries like Stephen’s, around 70 per cent of patients die at the scene. Those who do survive often don’t make the trip to hospital. Thankfully, the rescue helicopter was already airborne and only minutes away.
When the helicopter arrived on scene, local paramedic crews had done a fantastic job.
The helicopter’s critical care medical team moved quickly, working alongside paramedics to further stabilise Stephen. One wrong move and Stephen wouldn’t even make it to hospital.
He was airlifted to the John Hunter Hospital where orthopedic spine surgeon Dr Patrick Lim was waiting.
“It’s an extremely rare injury,” Dr Lim said.
“In my career, I’ve only encountered two cases like Stephen’s – and I may never see another. His spinal cord was at risk. He could have been paralysed or died.”
Surgery was the only option.
“In simple terms, I bolted his head back to his neck,” Dr Lim said.
Using rods and screws, Stephen’s skull was reattached and stabilised to his spine. That surgery saved his life.
Stephen spent three months in hospital undergoing intensive treatment and rehabilitation. Even now, the reality of what happened is hard to comprehend.
“They all say it’s hard to believe I’ve been to the jaws of death and somehow come back,” he said.
“Living where I do, to be on my property and then in one of the best hospitals in the country within 15 minutes… that’s extraordinary.”
For Dr Lim, the role of the helicopter was critical.
“The stability you get from air transport compared to a long, bumpy road transfer – it can make all the difference. In cases like this, that level of care during transport is vital.”
“This is fundamentally why our service exists,” said Westpac Rescue Helicopter Service Operations Manager Jessica Gregory.
“To reach patients when time, distance and severity are all stacked against them.”
| You can watch Stephen’s rescue story here: https://youtu.be/ZBWZ36YcJRU |
