15 + 7 points
Work is So Strange by Arietis
January 21st, 2011 11:26 AM
Date: Yesterday, 1/20/12
Time: Afternoon
Place: Secret Beach in Northern California, north of a small town
What happened:
I'll begin from the beginning. A friend of mine, we'll call him Jean who lives in Berkeley, was coming up for the day and let me know that he'd be bringing a friend from out of town (we'll call him Elliot). I decided our day would be well-spent at the beach (as I decide for most days - see this task), so we went out to a good sandy beach at around 1pm. Turns out Elliot hasn't really experienced the California coast so he goes beach combing and wades in the water. Joy.
We watch the little birds chase the waves back and forth scrounging for sandcrabs in the wet sand.
Jean decides that he wants to go to a different beach for better finding of interesting things as well as great views of the impending sunset. So we get in my small vehicle and drive north to Secret Beach. (Backstory: I found this beach one day while exploring the coast. It has no formal name though I named it as noted. It is located, as many beaches are, at the bottom of a steep ravine/cliff with no formal trail.)
So we kick it around Secret Beach, climbing the rocks for climbing and generally being merry. We decide that it's about time to hike back up to the bluff top and dig the sunset when...
a truck drives off the cliff and into the ravine.
It got air coming off the bluff and plunged into the side - like in the movies except without the explosion. So I send Jean back up the path with my car keys and our cellphones to call 911 as there was no service where we were. Elliot and I hike up the ravine to the truck. This is a steep ravine, with no solid footing, and a small creek running down it for added mud and fun.
We get to the truck and it is wedged into the ravine, suspended about a two feet off the ground at the passenger side and the front of it is absolutely destroyed. We call and look inside to find some dude bleeding from the head trying to get out of the truck so we help him out through the broken passenger door. He's uncooperative and shocked, and possibly very drunk. I get him to sit down but he won't say anything other than "this is bad." We ask him if there's anyone else in the truck and he asks "is she ok?"
So we look back inside and see this little girl/woman curled up in the fetal position at the foot of the passenger seat. We both fear the worst: his daughter is dead. Elliot reaches inside and tells me that she's got a pulse and is breathing. He climbs over to the driver's side and I reach inside and attempt to talk to her, she looks up at me and I discover that she's at least 25. Elliot manages to climb inside through the driver's door, and picks her up and passes her down to me (the driver's side door is above my head) - she's in shock with no visible injuries but can barely move.
I sit with her looking at the sunset and calming down while Elliot deals with the other dude. We are separated by the truck and remain in this state for maybe 20 minutes. She alternates between thanking me and yelling out. She says she's cold. I get her a jacket from the truck.
Then I hear voices, I look down to see two plain-clothed men climbing the ravine. They tell me they are detectives and are coming to help. I tell them the situation and realize I am watching the detectives. This makes me smile until she starts yelling again. I help the detectives climb up (they are having lot's of trouble with the ravine) and they take control of the situation. The fire department arrives, the choppers can be heard about. Super-EMT-guy comes flying out of the sky and straps her to a backboard and choppers her out. I have to walk up the rest of the ravine with the sheriffs.
Turns out you can't see the truck, or the path that it took, from the road. They drove approx. 300 feet through waist-high brush off the cliff. Also turns out that Jean flagged down 3 cars, the third which was full of off-duty detectives (they didn't believe him and searched him upon being flagged down - he says it took them about 5 minutes to actually start walking). Also turns out that this was Elliot's first California sunset.
I rewarded them for their valiance by stopping for gas, It's Its, and whiskey. The ice cream hit the spot. The whiskey later when I got home. Now it's the next day and I just got off the phone with the sheriff who had some more questions about the incident. Naturally, I realize that this is perfect for SF0.
Time: Afternoon
Place: Secret Beach in Northern California, north of a small town
What happened:
I'll begin from the beginning. A friend of mine, we'll call him Jean who lives in Berkeley, was coming up for the day and let me know that he'd be bringing a friend from out of town (we'll call him Elliot). I decided our day would be well-spent at the beach (as I decide for most days - see this task), so we went out to a good sandy beach at around 1pm. Turns out Elliot hasn't really experienced the California coast so he goes beach combing and wades in the water. Joy.
We watch the little birds chase the waves back and forth scrounging for sandcrabs in the wet sand.
Jean decides that he wants to go to a different beach for better finding of interesting things as well as great views of the impending sunset. So we get in my small vehicle and drive north to Secret Beach. (Backstory: I found this beach one day while exploring the coast. It has no formal name though I named it as noted. It is located, as many beaches are, at the bottom of a steep ravine/cliff with no formal trail.)
So we kick it around Secret Beach, climbing the rocks for climbing and generally being merry. We decide that it's about time to hike back up to the bluff top and dig the sunset when...
a truck drives off the cliff and into the ravine.
It got air coming off the bluff and plunged into the side - like in the movies except without the explosion. So I send Jean back up the path with my car keys and our cellphones to call 911 as there was no service where we were. Elliot and I hike up the ravine to the truck. This is a steep ravine, with no solid footing, and a small creek running down it for added mud and fun.
We get to the truck and it is wedged into the ravine, suspended about a two feet off the ground at the passenger side and the front of it is absolutely destroyed. We call and look inside to find some dude bleeding from the head trying to get out of the truck so we help him out through the broken passenger door. He's uncooperative and shocked, and possibly very drunk. I get him to sit down but he won't say anything other than "this is bad." We ask him if there's anyone else in the truck and he asks "is she ok?"
So we look back inside and see this little girl/woman curled up in the fetal position at the foot of the passenger seat. We both fear the worst: his daughter is dead. Elliot reaches inside and tells me that she's got a pulse and is breathing. He climbs over to the driver's side and I reach inside and attempt to talk to her, she looks up at me and I discover that she's at least 25. Elliot manages to climb inside through the driver's door, and picks her up and passes her down to me (the driver's side door is above my head) - she's in shock with no visible injuries but can barely move.
I sit with her looking at the sunset and calming down while Elliot deals with the other dude. We are separated by the truck and remain in this state for maybe 20 minutes. She alternates between thanking me and yelling out. She says she's cold. I get her a jacket from the truck.
Then I hear voices, I look down to see two plain-clothed men climbing the ravine. They tell me they are detectives and are coming to help. I tell them the situation and realize I am watching the detectives. This makes me smile until she starts yelling again. I help the detectives climb up (they are having lot's of trouble with the ravine) and they take control of the situation. The fire department arrives, the choppers can be heard about. Super-EMT-guy comes flying out of the sky and straps her to a backboard and choppers her out. I have to walk up the rest of the ravine with the sheriffs.
Turns out you can't see the truck, or the path that it took, from the road. They drove approx. 300 feet through waist-high brush off the cliff. Also turns out that Jean flagged down 3 cars, the third which was full of off-duty detectives (they didn't believe him and searched him upon being flagged down - he says it took them about 5 minutes to actually start walking). Also turns out that this was Elliot's first California sunset.
I rewarded them for their valiance by stopping for gas, It's Its, and whiskey. The ice cream hit the spot. The whiskey later when I got home. Now it's the next day and I just got off the phone with the sheriff who had some more questions about the incident. Naturally, I realize that this is perfect for SF0.
