A five-year-old boy sprang into action after his mother was hit by a tree while out walking. He ran for help and possibly saved her life.
Natalie Franks, 34, was vacationing in Ketchum, Idaho, with her two sons and husband Andy in July when tragedy struck.
The family of four were enjoying a walk when a pine tree ‘snapped and landed on top of’ Natalie.
In a GoFundMe launched after the incident, her husband described how their eldest son Colton began screaming and running for help.
According to Andy, his son’s screams were heard by a couple walking nearby and they called 911, saving her life.
Natalie Franks, 34, was vacationing in Ketchum, Idaho, with her two sons and husband Andy in July when she was seriously injured
The family of four were enjoying a walk when a pine tree ‘snapped and landed on’ Natalie
The incident left Natalie with dislocated hip and knee, one of her lungs collapsed and an artery in her left leg damaged.
Andy wrote: ‘She couldn’t move or call for help. Colton, who saved mom’s life, started running and screaming for help.
‘Eventually, a couple who were walking heard him screaming and ran to her aid as he walked ahead. They called 911.’
Natalie was hiking a portion of the Bald Mountain Trail when the incident occurred.
According to The Idaho Mountain ExpressSix firefighters arrived on the scene and managed to stabilise the woman before transferring her to the ambulance on a stretcher.
She was rushed to St. Luke’s Wood River Medical Center, where she was intubated and later flown by helicopter to Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise.
At the hospital in Boise, surgeons removed veins from her right leg to create an artery in her left leg to restore blood flow.
Andy wrote: ‘Through the many CT scans, MRIs and X-rays we have learned the severity of many of Natalie’s other injuries.
‘Natalie has a severely broken scapula (left shoulder), 9 broken ribs, 3 broken vertebrae, a severely broken hip and at the time of writing we are awaiting further MRI results to get more details on the soft tissue injuries, particularly around her left knee and hip.’
After spending several days in a rehabilitation hospital, Natalie herself wrote at the August fundraiser that she could not remember anything about the accident
She was rushed to St. Luke’s Wood River Medical Center, where she was intubated and later flown by helicopter to Saint Alphonsus Regional Medical Center in Boise.
The incident left Natalie with dislocated hip and knee, one of her lungs collapsed and an artery in her left leg was severed.
Further updates from her family revealed that she had also torn her anterior cruciate ligament and damaged the muscles around her left knee.
After spending several days in a rehabilitation hospital, Natalie herself wrote on the fundraiser in August that she could not remember anything about the accident.
In her extensive messages, she thanked her friends and family members who helped her as she underwent several surgeries.
She said, “Thank you for following this journey with me. Words can never describe the depth of my gratitude.
‘I hope that I will find a new rhythm at home and that as I become more comfortable and confident, I will be able to see you in person again soon!’
After a month of trials, Andy wrote on August 31 that the family had returned to their home in California.
He said, “We learn to act with a new level of grace, to forgive quickly, to laugh off the ridiculousness of it all, and to move on, one day at a time.
“Our commitment to loving in this way, despite all the ups and downs (and there are quite a few), has shaped us into the type of people who can weather the greatest adversity imaginable and still come out the other side ready to say yes and serve each other deep into the night, despite exhaustion and discomfort.”
Since the family started the fundraiser early last month, they have raised more than $202,000.