FRENCH COVE: Local first responders and the family of a young woman who was involved in a serious all-terrain-vehicle (ATV) accident last month, want the public to know a device such as an Apple Watch could save a life in similar circumstances.
On the afternoon of Sept. 13, Abbie Burke did what she often does and went exploring the local trails outside of St. Peter’s on her ATV. Around 5 p.m. her mother Tara MacAulay received what she said was a terrifying phone call; her daughter was in an accident and hurt.
“She was screaming that she was hurt really, really badly, and that I needed to come find her,” says MacAulay.
MacAulay quickly jumped on her ATV, and with the help of locals, they all attempted to find her daughter.
While they were searching for her, Burke, who lay injured, was able to stay talking to them using her watch. She gave them a description of where she was and let her mother know when she heard their bikes approaching.
“Abbie was still telling me she couldn’t see the road and that she flew 10 feet off the bike. So, we couldn’t see her and we passed her, and then she called us and described where she was at perfectly,” says MacAulay.
That’s when they saw the back of Burke’s bike sticking out of the woods and then quickly located her. With locals helping direct emergency vehicles to the scene, Burke was airlifted to Halifax.
“She was transported to the Strait-Richmond Hospital. The (Emergency Health Services) LifeFlight picked her up and due to fog she had to be dropped at the airport and transported to the hospital,” says MacAulay. “She had a very bad femur break, it was shattered, so she would go into surgery for that. She had three minor fractures to her spine and minor hematoma behind her sternum.”
MacAulay says she wants other parents to know how important this device is in case of a similar emergency.
“I think everybody should have one. Her phone flew off her on impact, but she was close enough in range with her Apple Watch that she could connect to her phone. She pressed the button and she was able to call us and 911 from it.”
Burke says when her phone went flying on impact, she instinctively knew to use her Apple Watch to call her mom and 911.
“My phone was in my pocket and managed to fly pretty far away from me and the apple watch was what helped me be able to call. It was on my wrist and luckily I could get to it with my other arm,” says Burke.
Burke says another important safety tip is to let family or friends know when heading out on an ATV or trails, and stick to familiar areas when alone.
“It’s good to know where you’re going, so then you can give an explanation and hopefully that person can know where you are,” says Burke.
That was a sentiment shared by Raymond Ferguson with the St. Peter’s and District Volunteer Fire Department.
Without Burke being able to call using her Apple Watch, Ferguson says things may have gone very differently that night. He says he wants people to start considering taking an apple watch or similar device when on an ATV alone.
“In my opinion, it saved her life. It was late in the afternoon and in another couple hours we would have started to lose daylight. That Apple Watch saved her life that night,” says Ferguson. “If you can, you should take one when getting your gear together to go out. I can’t stress that fact enough.”
It was a nightmare of an ordeal, says MacAulay, but after eight days in the hospital she’s home with her daughter who is on the mend.
“It was traumatic both mentally and physically for her. Hopefully people will always be aware that these machines can be very dangerous,” she added.