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Hazardous Duty

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Nancy in Friday Harbor

Junior Member
Joined
Jan 16, 2002
Professional Status
Certified Residential Appraiser
State
Washington
Hi All,

A sad and cautionary tale......

One of the appraisers who works for the San Juan County assessor was measuring new construction at a remote location and fell from the second floor last week. She fractured the 1st and 3rd lumbar vertabrae and shattered her heel. It took her an hour to crawl back to the car to her cell phone to call for help.

The EMT's got her med-evac'd to Bellingham. The hospital people took one look at her & put her back on the helicopter for Harborview Trauma Center in Seattle.

She's now in a full body cast and waiting for the trauma docs to operate on her heel. She'll be in the body cast for at least 2-3 months. They're hoping they won't have to fuse the spine. While things look good right now and she's not paralyzed, she may never walk again. At best she faces months, and maybe years, of physical therapy.

While we may occasionally think we're infallible, we can't ever think we're invincible!! If you are alone on a site visit, no matter the circumstances, keep your cell phone on your person and BE CAREFUL!!!!!

To all of you caring, generous folks out there, I know Harriet would appreciate your prayers and kind thoughts.

Nancy
 
Nancy, our thoughts and prayers are with Harriet. What a horrible shame! Yes, we must all be more careful. We race around all the time trying to make deadlines and for what? Thank you for sharing that...and the rest of you out there.....Please be careful!
 
Give your friend our best thoughts and prayers! Thank God she had a cell phone!
 
Nancy

you have our support and best wishes for her;

Note: when visiting new construction sites, if no one else is there - extreme caution needs to be of primary importance, you do not know what someone has left undone or only set as an example; one mistake and it will lead to a problem or even death. The word "careful" here is an understatement.

8)
 
One particular point I neglected to mention:
Construction Stairs
(the temporary staircase put in at early stage for construction workers use)
About 10 years ago a Realtor walked up them and they caved...another disaster.
 
Fifteen year ago I was inspecting a new house
next to where I lived, and was at the 3rd level,
and hit the top stringer, it broke, and if there
wasn't a open window area where I twirled
around and grabed (brusing my chest and
ribs), I would have fallen a good 20 feet
and would haven broken bones or worse.

BE CAREFUL...especially new construction!!!

elliott
 
Oh, one more safety tip.......

If you're on a balcony and the door slams shut, break a window or kick in the door. Do not try to climb off. (This assumes there's no one there to open the door for you!! 8O ) It's a lot cheaper to buy a new window than to be laid up in the hospital!!

I understand that the break the window reaction is very typical of men but just doesn't occur to women. :oops: One of those male/female psychological things. OK gals, now we know!!
 
Nancy......She certainly has our prayers and our blessings......the sad news of the accident is somewhat, if mildly, tempered by the fact that she is a county employee.

How many of us have insurance that would allow us to not file bankruptcy after such an event? One misstep and all we have worked for is gone........
 
Well, Greg.....

There's good news and bad news.

The good news, her medical bills will be paid.

The bad news, her salary stopped the minute she fell and L&I/Worker's Comp pays but a fraction of her salary. She & her partner have already put their newly purchased home, of which she was extremely proud (beautiful gardens, great house, etc.), on the market. It's too much for one person to maintain while traveling to Seattle to make hospital visits and it's not set up for a person with mobility challenges. Not to mention the loss of an income to help with the mortgage. They only bought the house in February......I just don't see that they will come out of the sale without some loss--even if they break even on the sale, they still have closing costs, commissions, etc.

So maybe it's not bankrupcy, but it is going to be financially devastating to both of them. Terribly, terribly sad. And you're right. One misstep and it's all gone. Scary.

And I'll bet for most of us, it wouldn't take something as serious as a broken back to put us in that spot. I think of the times I've stepped in a rabbit hole and fallen. Or had a board on a deck/stairs of an old house crack. Or climb down a rocky bank to the shoreline and twist an ankle. Or slip on wet moss on a rocky shoreline with a high bluff (my personal most terrifying moment). I guess I have to say, there but for the grace of God go any one of us!!
 
I'm mostly recovered from a recent Broken hand (Stupid story....don't hit chairs :oops: )....my medical bills for JUST one broken bone (5th metacarple) was in excess of $8500.00. thankfully my wife ha fairly good health insurance so I won't end up "handing" over the whole portion....I just have to "Foot" my part, 20% OUCH!
 
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