Loughborough man’s life flashed before his eyes in horror plunge on Peak District trip
A Loughborough[1] man who had a 15ft fall from a mountain, breaking his ribs, which punctured his lung, said his life flashed before his eyes and he still has nightmares of death. Matt Hopper had been high up on the edge of Cave Dale, near Castleton in the Peak District with his brother Rich when the accident happened. The businessman and keen hiker lost his footing while on the edge of a steep incline and fell, bouncing off the mountainside before coming to a halt, almost unconscious and with internal bleeding, three broken ribs and a collapsed right lung.
Rich’s phone was out of battery but luckily some quick-thinking students hiking nearby saw what had happened and used the what3words app to give the emergency services Matt’s precise location. The Edale Mountain Rescue Team got him down to the road and East Midlands Ambulance Service[2] (EMAS) rushed him to hospital in Sheffield. Describing the fall, Matt, 47, said: “I felt I was in the air forever as I plummeted downwards.
My life flashed before my eyes as I fell. “I thought, ‘that’s it’, until I hit a wall, barely conscious.” The rescue team had to climb down into a gully to get to Matt, who believes hitting the wall on his way down may have slowed his descent and saved his life.
He’s also grateful to the rescuers who he is now supporting. He said: “I owe my life to Edale Mountain Rescue Team. I want to raise awareness for these unsung heroes.”
Matt is still recovering from his injuries, including issues with his right shoulder and a lot of nerve pain, which doctors believe will continue for months to come.
It took half an hour to get Matt down the gully on a stretcher
The team, a group of skilled volunteers who always have members on call at a moment’s notice, managed to get to Matt within 50 minutes of the call from the students. When they reached him they asked him questions to make sure he was coherent and keep him conscious, including his name, date of birth and favourite beer. They checked his vital signs, gave him morphine, got him on a stretcher and then eight of the 19 rescuers carried the stretcher as they spent about half an hour getting him down to the road.
Once down, two paramedics from EMAS took over the care before taking him to Northern General Hospital, Sheffield, where he stayed for five days.
Matt Hopper
Matt said: “I still wake up from nightmares where I have died, reliving the accident, thankful to be alive. I realise just how short life is and that you never know what is around the corner.” Matt has set up a fundraising page to help the rescuers, who require about GBP100,000 a year to cover their expenses, which includes months of training for new members and equipment including vehicles, radios, ropes and stretchers.
The team gets its home base provided for free by a Derbyshire cement works.
It has already carried out more than 130 rescues this year, with their jobs involving lost walkers, stranded paragliders and people missing from care homes.
To donate to Matt’s JustGiving page click here.[4]
References
- ^ Loughborough (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
- ^ East Midlands Ambulance Service (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
- ^ New venue opening in Leicester and jobs are available (www.leicestermercury.co.uk)
- ^ To donate to Matt’s JustGiving page click here. (www.justgiving.com)