Date of Event: 4/23/2022
Canyon Involved: Lower Salmon
Region: CA
Country: United States
Submitted by: Anonymous
Source: The canyoneer who fell & team
Injury: Sprain or strain, Fracture, Dislocation, Psychological
Cause: Rappel error, Fall or slip, Inverted and lost brakeline, Inadequate equipment, Didn’t request belay, didn’t drop pack, poor technique in flow
Description of Event: Group size: 5
Experience: intermediate to advanced
Familiarity: 1 knew canyon
Route: sneak to R4 (Rabbit hole)
Weather: winter storm earlier in the week “sporty” flow considered moderate for canyon, however the feature itself is considered high flow (funnel) in retrospect
Objective: easy quarter day canyon
Accident: Canyoneer B got inverted on rappel and lost grip of brakeline. Fell approximately 15′ head first and dislocated shoulder. She also broke 3 transverse processes on L2-L4 vertebrae.
Play by play: Incident occurred on R4 (The Rabbit Hole). This was our first rappel of the day as we did a sneak approach that dropped us in below the other rappels. Water flow was around moderate/low, Class C. Canyoneer A attempted to clip the ropebag into the anchor but inadvertently dropped it and it fell down the drop and lodged in some rocks near the bottom. Canyoneer A rappelled down without incident and waded over to the top of the large boulder which had the anchor for R5. Canyoneer A intended to take pictures of the rest of the group and was rummaging through their pack when they heard yelling coming from R4. Canyoneer A looked up and saw that Canyoneer B was completely inverted, then fell about 10-15 feet. Canyoneer A went to assist Canyoneer B who was conscious and breathing in waist deep water, tangled with the rope and sticks. They were not able to communicate well due to noise from the falls. Canyoneer A helped untangle Canyoneer B from the debris and move to sunlight. The rest of the team completed R4 after throwing their packs down. Canyoneer B was able to walk with considerable pain and a makeshift shoulder demobilizer using a SamSplint, electrical tape, and a climbing sling. Medications were provided. Canyoneer B was lowered down R5 (the last rappel) with Canyoneer C adjacent on a separate rappel strand. Canyoneer B was assisted through the exit with multiple partner assists. Technical ropework was provided by Canyoneer D. First aid was provided by Canyoneer E. Quality moral support was critical for this successful self rescue.
Prognosis: Dislocation reduced in ER. Broken shoulder. Torn ligaments and labrum in shoulder requiring surgery. Dominant arm. Physical recovery time expected to be 6 months post-op, however axial nerve palsy may override that expectation. Broken back but no spinal cord injury. Psychological impact of trauma and recovery not to be underestimated.
Analysis: Rappel was only 25′ and Canyoneer B did not anticipate losing control of the rope, therefore she regrettably did not request a belay. Partner below (A) did not default to providing belay. Harness designated for caving (low attachment point) judged to play a role despite no issues for 3 years prior (mostly dry or low flow canyons). Her backpack was nearly empty, and she did not consider the impact of the bag’s surface area on inversion risk. However the backpack did prevent further spinal injury. Overall, she did not thoroughly consider the risk of inverting. She believes her brake hand remained engaged and lost the rope once inverted. Gears on rappel device (Sqwurel) may have popped out once inverted. Canyoneer B believes inversion could have been avoided if she rappeled with one hip to the falls and stemmed away from the water flow. She made a conscious decision to continue rappelling while inverted without waiting for contingency lower due to concerns for drowning. She estimates inversion to lost control occurred in less than 30 seconds.
Canyoneer C believes more control could have been maintained if B had two hands on the rope, one above rappel device.