Learning from a successful
LIFE
SAVING
Words and photos : Michael Gallion First , all the paddlers involved in the rescue are fine and well . We all love paddlesport and are shaken but happy to return to the water to do what we love . We recognised that the rescue was life-saving , but training kicked in to save our friend . We decided to summarise the event , learning and thoughts and hope this is helpful to others as well . rescue
The key essence of this rescue was time ; it had to be a quick rescue , quick thinking , perseverance and using ingenuity to overcome problems . Rescue situations are not like training scenarios , and many factors play a role . In this case , where a paddler was trapped with their head underwater is one of the worst-case scenarios to be faced with .
Initially , we felt inadequate , incompetent , helpless and a failure despite the successful outcome and thought it was down to luck . When we reviewed the video , we realised that we did many things right , and that was due to our training . In addition , we thought of what else we could learn from this to be even better prepared for the future . We learned that we could practise more , to have more tools available as every situation is different and instinctive behaviour due to training can make the difference .
ThePADDLER 13