Heroic Nurse and Hikers Save Grandfather in Canyon Rescue

Quick Smiles:

• School nurse Ashley Anderson jumps into action during a canyon hike.
• Hikers work together to aid a grandfather who fell 20 feet.
• A helicopter rescue ensures the grandfather’s safe return.

Ashley Anderson was enjoying a Memorial Day hike with her children and dogs when an unexpected cry for help caught her attention.

Initially unsure of what she was witnessing, she soon realized a person was in need.

A 64-year-old grandfather had taken a 20-foot tumble down a waterfall in Utah’s Adams Canyon.

Anderson, who works as a school nurse, immediately put her skills to use.

“He had an ‘obviously broken’ leg and his head was ‘sliced open and bleeding,’” she shared.

Upon reaching the scene, Anderson and other compassionate hikers worked together to move the injured man out of the frigid water.

Anderson quickly assessed the situation and asked for help to stop the bleeding on his head.

“This guy rips off his shirt and throws it on me, so we put that on his head, and several of us picked him up and moved him to a dry area over on the rocks,” Anderson recalled.

Rescue teams soon arrived, deploying a helicopter to safely extract the man from the canyon.

The grandfather had been hiking with his family when he became separated and slipped into the canyon.

Despite shattering his kneecap and breaking his femur, he is expected to recover fully.

Reflecting on her actions, Anderson humbly stated, “I kind of think that I did what anyone would do. I don’t feel like I did anything like more heroic or more incredible.”

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