The calm, decisive actions of Seaham’s Ash Wade in a time of crisis has earned the 11-year-old the praise of paramedics.
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The Star Award recipient called Triple-0 in July when a boys’ mountain climbing expedition went horribly wrong.
A rock fell on friend Josh Ferry’s leg that would require specialist surgery to repair but not before the 11-year-old could be rescued.
While two other boys – Sam Wade, 9, and Francis Kime, 11 – went for help, Ash put his mobile phone to good use.
“If like Ash they can stay calm, explain the situation, and answer some questions, it helps us come to their aid,” NSW Ambulance Service station officer (Dungog) Annette Vickery said.
“The location and nature of injuries are the most crucial pieces of information.”
Ash directed emergency services to the family property and directed these services to a bush track. From there the paramedics were able to stabilise Josh and transport him back down the track in a four-wheel-drive ambulance.
“Due to Ash giving us good directions while keeping Josh calm we were able to find him and bring him back down the hill to the rescue helicopter,” Ms Vickery said.
Meanwhile Nicole Ferry received word from Barb Wade that their boys had suffered some misadventure.
“It’s the phone call that no parent wants to receive... ‘don’t panic but’. What I didn’t realise until later was that in the prior 45 minutes was a story of camaraderie, resilience and mateship above measure,” she said.
“I’m forever indebted to everyone who helped and my little bush heroes.”
Mrs Wade said she was very proud of Ash.
“He’s a cool, calm, level-headed kid so I’m not surprised he knew to call for help,” she said.
“We had spoken about Triple-0 and only doing it when it was serious. After, he said ‘mum, I was sure I had to call’.”
The injury occurred about 4.45pm on July 6 and Josh wouldn’t be flown from the property until 9pm.
Josh’s mum, a nurse, said her son wouldn’t undergo surgery until the next morning at the John Hunter Hospital.
They managed to repair the compound fracture and stitch the wound despite early fears the skin might not recover.
After a month in hospital Josh returned to Seaham Public School. The award presentation took place at a school assembly on Tuesday.
There a few simple steps to take when making a Triple-0 call:
Stay calm and call Triple Zero (000) from a safe location.
A Telstra operator will ask you if you need Police, Fire or Ambulance. Say the service that you require. If you are calling using a mobile or satellite phone the operator will ask you for other location information.
You will then be connected to an emergency service operator, who will take details of the situation.
Stay on the line, speak clearly and answer the operator's questions.
Give the nominated emergency service operator the details of where you are, including street number, name, nearest cross street, and locality. In rural areas it is important to give the full address and distances from landmarks and roads, not just the name of the property.
Don't hang up until the operator has all the information they need.
If possible wait outside at a prearranged meeting point or in a prominent location for emergency services to arrive to assist them to locate the emergency.
If you make a Triple-0 call whilst travelling on a Motorway or on a rural road, identifying the direction you are travelling and the last exit or town you passed through will assist emergency services to correctly locate the incident.
Other things everyone should know in an emergency:
If a person is unable to speak English, they should call Triple-0 from a fixed line, say ‘Police’, ‘Fire’ or ‘Ambulance’. Once connected to the nominated emergency service, stay on the line and a translator will be organised.
Record the Triple-0 emergency number beside the telephone at home and work.
Take time to teach children and overseas visitors how to make an emergency call.
Callers with hearing or speech impairments can call the one zero six (106) text-based emergency call service using a text phone.