Utah BASE Jumper survives accident - WARNING - GRAPHIC

[Sombeech]

A Utah daredevil survived a stunning fall in Moab last week, but competing for the amazement factor is his unbelievably calm demeanor right afterward.

Ammon McNeely, an experienced climber and base jumper, filmed himself right after he fell Friday.

“Well, that didn’t go good,” McNeely said in the video. “I don’t know if it’s the breaks that just got redone.”

Ammon McNeely seemed extremely calm after a failed base jump consider the extent of his injury. (Image source: YouTube video screenshot)

He then shifted the camera from his face to his leg. Cue gasp.

This screenshot has been edited due to its graphic nature. McNeely’s leg was broken just above his ankle, leaving his foot almost completed severed. (Image source: YouTube video screenshot)

His leg just above his ankle was completely broken and bloody, with the bone poking through. He tied it with a tourniquet.

“As you can see, I probably lost my leg,” McNeely continued, rubbing his hand through his hair. “Yep, not cool.”

“Sorry mom, I think I lost my leg on that one,” McNeely said later after someone yelled up that help was on the way.

While it might seem like McNeely was in a state of shock (and he probably was), he acknowledged that the break hurt, “but I didn’t die.”

According to KSL-TV, McNeely’s parachute didn’t deploy after he jumped in Moab. He was rescued by helicopter and taken for medical treatment.

His friend Steph Davis told the local news station she wasn’t surprised when she saw footage of his calm attitude.

“Ammon is a really tough guy so that was my first thought (after watching the video),” Davis told the local news station.

In a Facebook post, McNeely gave even more details about the accident. First and foremost, he said, “I take 100 percent of the responsibility for this, and all other, accidents/injuries both in BASE jumping and rock climbing.”

After seeing his injury, he wrote, his first thought was to wiggle his toes because he thought “this is the last time I will ever feel that sensation.”

It took 45 minutes for help to arrive. He later learned he lost three pints of blood and “was very close to leaving this world by the time the helicopter got me to the hospital.”

When he woke up in medical care the next day, he said he was prepared to not have a foot and ready to go “full pirate mode with a peg leg,” but doctors had managed to save it. It’s not certain, however, that the foot will remain viable due to the possibility of infection.

While disappointed with the injury, McNeely reiterated “I survived” and asked “Do we stand up and take the risks and have a blast enjoying our passions in life? Or, do we hide in the shadows, being afraid of what might happen if we are so bold to follow our dreams?”

Watch the footage — if you can stomach it — to see how amazingly calm McNeely was given the circumstances (content warning: extremely graphic images and some strong language):

(here is an edited version)



and here's a pretty graphic version.

[rockgremlin]

Weird! His entire leg from the knee to his ankle is gone. Great post.

[accadacca]

That is freaking SICK! I would have passed out immediately.

As someone said on YouTube, "walk it off."

[Sombeech]

I guess he's expected to make a full recovery!

[Taylor]

Amazing what those reconstructive/plastic surgery guys can do. I'm guessing he didn't have that surgery in Moab.

[Bootboy]

Amazing what those reconstructive/plastic surgery guys can do. I'm guessing he didn't have that surgery in Moab.

It's actually a fairly straight forward orthopedic procedure. Literally knock him out, scrub the crap out of it, and bolt it back together. Plastics/reconstructive is all cosmetic stuff. Orthopedics is all about the nuts and bolts. I've seen a lot of similar injuries while ski patrolling. As long as they can re-establish perfusion and keep the infection out, it's amazing what the human body can recover from.