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RZR accident at Banshee Hill 3-19-16


dunefreak
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Saturday evening we went for a nice sunset cruise and stopped at the top of the dune to watch the sunset.

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Two RZRs were playing around on Banshee Hill and jumping the hump at the bottom. One of them, a 4 seat turbo RZR 1000, went up Banshee Hill, turned around and made a full throttle run at the jump. It sounded like he maybe realized he was coming in too fast and let off the throttle. He was probably going 60 mph or so when he hit the jump. The RZR launched and bucked the back end badly. I think it landed nose first them rolled about 3-4 times. Their friends plus a few guys that were at Banshee Hill were first on the scene.

Dentboy drove down to check on them and he signaled us with his lights that it was bad. We all rushed down to see how they were. There were 3 people in the RZR. An adult male driving, a 10 year old boy in the passenger seat, and another adult male in the back seat. They were all pulled out and laying in the sand when we arrived. The driver was sitting up in pain with a broken collarbone. His son was hurt and complaining of stomach pains. It looked like he hit the passenger grab handle because it was bent. The rear passenger was in bad shape. He was going in and out of consciousness when we first arrived but they managed to keep him awake. His forehead had 2 or 3 big goose eggs and his head was bleeding. He had no feeling in his feet either. He was in the worse shape.

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Dentboy ran back to camp to get his wife who is a nurse. He and I both called 911. They dispatched an ambulance and the SB Fire Dept plus a helicopter was on it's way. It took forever. I waited at the ranger station for them to arrive. Baker EMS showed up first, but they needed SB Fire Dept to show up with the 4 wheel drive Expedition truck. They finally showed up. I was pretty frustrated how they seemed to have no sense of urgency. They didn't seem to be moving very fast at all. These guys in the accident needed help like now. Just as I thought they were all going to hop in the truck and follow me over to the hill, they started airing down the tires which took another 10+ minutes. We drove over to the accident scene and they got them all loaded up and brought them to the ranger station. We planned on dragging the RZR back to their camp that night but it got really late by the time everything was handled. Once we were back at camp I saw the helicopter land.

 

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Sunday morning we went over to check on the RZR. Luckily all their stuff was still there and it wasn't stripped or messed with. Oh and by the way, the RZR was a rental. Dentboy hooked on to it and he managed to drag it back to their camp which was just a few camps down from us by bathroom 6. Jeff, the driver's friend, was the only one in camp and was very grateful for our help. He couldn't even leave camp because he was watching his buddies kids. Some other guys came over and they helped him get it loaded on the trailer. Jeff informed us the boy was ok, the driver had a broken collarbone and was on his way back out to bring the motorhome & RZR home. The other guy wasn't as lucky. He went into surgery for a broken C5 and C6. Everything went well in surgery, but they think he may be paralyzed. He still has no feeling in his legs. I think he said no feeling or movement from the neck down, but I am not too sure.

 

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It was a horrible sight to see. Those stock RZR cages are junk. It didn't do a very good job protecting them, but then again that was a very bad crash. The seats didn't even stay secured in the vehicle. They all had helmets on but his friend said the 2 adults didn't have their's strapped and the helmets went flying out of the RZR went they crashed. It was the driver's first time to Dumont and, as mentioned earlier, it was a rental. He should not have hit that jump like that., Everyone I have seen jump that lip at the bottom of Banshee Hill gets bucked really bad. I hate seeing people get hurt or killed out there especially when it can be avoided. I hope they all heal and recover ok.

I walked it out and they ended up about 250 feet from where they jumped.

 

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Towing it back to camp...

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The sound of that crash was horrendous, I went back and forth to the injured's camp a few times to keep the injured passengers wife informed / calm as she was watching the kids in camp, we also took her to see her husband before he was flown out. Having dentboys wife at the seen was a true blessing for those three, and hopefully a relief for the wife in camp. Props to Pete for handling communications (at the price of his phone), Anna for taking exceptional care care of the young one and Chad for acting quickly / getting his wife. I've seen a lot of incidents like this over the years, some much worse, it really sinks in how remote the area is and how helpless one can feel. While I have my opinions on this particular accident, I will keep them to myself. Most of these accidents can be prevented and a lot of injuries can be reduced by having proper safety equipment. Hope everyone involved heal up quick and even more gain knowledge. I will state the obvious though, I wouldn't drive out of the trailer in a rzr with stock belts and / or a stock cage. I think any seat would have come out the way the rzrs are designed as they rely on the belts / passenger to keep them in place. Hope all involved recover quickly, I fractured C6-C7 on a dirt bike years ago, it may take a while but the spine can recover from trauma.

edit to add: There was a group of guys and a girl there (for the drags) in a white F250, they were first on scene as they were right there when it happened. They stayed with the injured till all were transported which was quite a while. Nicely done fellow duners :thumb:

Edited by raspadoo
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I agree with Raspadoo, cage and belts are a must and as for the jump you have to hit it just right, with the right throttle and a newbie won't be able to. I watched the guys from the UAE hit that jump and nose pick it, ripping the front suspension off of theirs. Such a shame, I hope that there is a quick recovery.

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Everyone nose dives off that lip. It's to short, with stock suspension the rear will compress and buck up, that combined with letting off the gas just before you launch, and the engine breaking in mid air...it's going to lawn dart. I feel horrible for the injured and wish them a speedy recovery..but I'm also a bit angry someone would rent a turbo sxs, put their kid in it and launch it off a dangerous jump. Please don't think you can watch a YouTube video and go do it safely. They are lucky there were such awesome people there to help.

Sent from the dune in front of you

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My son and my brothers and I were the ones on the White f-350. I hope everyone is ok. The rear passengers name is michael Griffin if im not mistaken. Before the paramedics got there, the nurse was checking his legs and michael did have some feeling at that time. I will be praying for everyone that was involved.

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My son and my brothers and I were the ones on the White f-350. I hope everyone is ok. The rear passengers name is michael Griffin if im not mistaken. Before the paramedics got there, the nurse was checking his legs and michael did have some feeling at that time. I will be praying for everyone that was involved.

Sunday morning I spoke with his buddy, Jeff, the guy in the other RZR. They said after surgery he still had some feeling but no movement. It's going to take some time before they know.

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My son and my brothers and I were the ones on the White f-350. I hope everyone is ok. The rear passengers name is michael Griffin if im not mistaken. Before the paramedics got there, the nurse was checking his legs and michael did have some feeling at that time. I will be praying for everyone that was involved.

Pretty sure his name is John Murphy, none the less hope he heals quickly :thumb:

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Hello everyone. First off I want to send out a THANK YOU to everyone that attended to this accident. This is Jeff. I was in the other Rzr messing around a little on that jump before the crash. I am so impressed and can't show my appreciation enough to everyone and how quickly you all helped me and my friends. It really goes to show you kind and caring people are. It was a horrible accident and something that can be avoided. Here is the updates to my friends. The driver is back home resting with a broken collar bone and banged up leg and cuts and bruises here and there on him. His 10 year old son Logan has been in ICU until early this afternoon where he was taken to a regular room for further obersavations. He had some bleeding in his lower abdomen that they have been keeping a close eye on. He should be released in a few days. The rear passenger Jon Murphy is doing well. The surgury was successful and he is showing good Positive steps. He is able to slowly move his arms but still has no movement in his hand,feet, and legs. However he can feel the doctors touching him so that is a positive sign. He suffered a big gash to his head between his eyes and also a big gash to back of his head where he got staples. I'm not sure if we even knew the back of his head was cut until he got to ER. . They removed the breathing tube today so he is able to talk. He told his wife he remembers the crash up until the first impact. He said to her today he died. The 10-15 minutes of me and whomever helped pull him out of car (thank you) that he was unresponsive was pitch black. He said first thing he remembers is the brunette nurse helping him in the sand. So to this nurse and I sorry I don't remember names. Thank you thank you thank you. Right now he looks good and time will tell what's going to be. Jonny is a fighter and he is a strong dude so we are all staying positive.

Please to all that hear of this accident. Be careful. Know your limits. Don't discount inexperience to get a 5 second adrenaline rush. Things can go from bad to worse in blink of an eye. Know your machines and know them well before you start pushing it.

Again thank you to everyone that attended to my friends. If it wasn't for all of your immediate attention we may of seen a more tragic outcome. Keep my friends in your thoughts and prayers. All of you that helped, you are truly all hero. Words cannot express our gratitude in what you all did.

Ride safe, wear your protective gear and know your machine and know your limit.

Much Love

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Hey Jeff, great to hear man. I meant to get your phone number on Sunday before we left your camp but forgot. I'm glad you found us on here though. I wanted to be able to check up and see how they are doing.

I am glad it wasn't worse. I have a good feeling Jon will be walking again. Thinking positive thoughts for all of them for a full recovery.

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Wow, what a scene, fellow duners jumping in really helped make that situation better it sounds like. A rental....geeze....anyone who is renting out their rzr at DD is kind of asking for it, not good to rent to people who have never been. Really hope everyone recovers, positive thoughts to the victims and speedy healing.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Heart-breaking witnessing and hearing about these accidents. Positive energy sent and prayers for healing, for the lives affected by this accident. Be mindful and safe out there..

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Any updates on the gentlemen who was injured in the back seat? We were talking about this accident last night. Hopefully he's. Recovering and getting use of his legs.

Back injuries suck. I also broke my back on this same jump, nothing like this accident, as I actually landed perfectly just too far too high and too fast.

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  • 3 months later...

Any updates on the gentlemen who was injured in the back seat? We were talking about this accident last night. Hopefully he's. Recovering and getting use of his legs.

Back injuries suck. I also broke my back on this same jump, nothing like this accident, as I actually landed perfectly just too far too high and too fast.

Think about this from time to time as well, updates anyone?

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  • 1 year later...

Just wanted to thank all of you that responded and helped out this awful night. The rear passenger John Murphy, is my brother. This accident has really changed all of our lives forever. John is still paralyzed, but is healthy and trying his best to manage his new life. 

I’m blessed he’s alive. Mostly due to all of you there that evening. I can’t express my gratitude enough, truly. 

It was very surreal learning about what happened from your blog...thank you for being so descriptive. 

Be safe, and peace to all.

💕

Heather 

 

 

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  • 4 weeks later...

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