Jay Hutchinson, a junior in math education, fell from the top of the Bell Canyon waterfall nearly two weeks ago. Hutchinson broke both his arms, dislocated his elbow, broke one leg and his frontal pelvic bone, cracked several ribs, separated his hip and broke his jaw bone, which has since been wired shut.

The fall was approximately 40 feet, said Nicole Johnson, a senior in bioengineering, who was with Hutchinson when the accident occurred.
“We were hiking in Bell Canyon and we walked up the trail to the stream at the top of the waterfall,” Johnson said. “Jay went out onto a rock to get a picture from the tip of it and he slipped and fell.”

Hutchinson’s life was saved when Johnson rushed down to the bottom of the waterfall and pulled his submerged head from water at the bottom. He was unconscious at the time and likely would have drowned.

Joe Munson, a junior in English and Hutchinson’s roommate, said by the time Johnson reached the bottom, Hutchinson’s lips were blue and she believed he was dead.

“I went down and pulled him out of the water,” Johnson said. “He was Life-Flighted out about two hours later.”

Hutchinson was brought to Intermountain Medical Center in Murray before being transferred to the ICU at University Hospital.

Jared Buchta, a paramedic with the Salt Lake Fire Department, said when they are called out for a major fall or trauma, the first thing they are looking for is if the patient is still breathing, and the second means checking for a pulse. Thirdly, paramedics check for bleeding.

It is important to verify the patient is breathing before attempting to stop any bleeding, Buchta said. A patient who is not breathing could likely suffocate before they bleed to death.

“You want to keep their [cervical spine] aligned,” Buchta said.

Aligning the cervical spine means straightening the neck so the airways are not obstructed. If the patient is not breathing, it may be necessary to perform mouth-to-mouth resuscitation until first responders arrive.

Buchta said the amount of time it can take for air or ground rescue transportation can vary, but that dialing 9-11 is the best procedure in these circumstance as they will send the closest agency.

“Most likely your fire department and paramedics will be coming,” Buchta said. “And then from there the fire department is deciding if it’s going to be faster to go by ambulance, by the ground, or whether they’re going to get air transport and get a helicopter.”

Hutchinson was released from the hospital last Saturday. Munson said doctors suggested Hutchinson may be well enough to attend Spring Semester.

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