Nov 23, 2023

Older woman impales herself with garden tool

Untitled design - 2023-11-23T111636.361
The 83-year-old was airlifted to a Brisbane hospital after local doctors failed to remove the stake. [Source: LifeFight]

An older woman has been airlifted to hospital after impaling herself with a garden stake.

Queensland Ambulance Service Senior Operations Supervisor Nigel Jones said the 83-year-old woman was walking through her backyard at her home at Eli Waters in Hervey Bay holding a garden stake when she tripped and fell Tuesday afternoon.

The woman was home alone at the time of the accident but called out to neighbours for help, who dialled triple-0. Mr Jones said when ambulances responded, the woman was conscious and alert with no significant bleeding.

“She was in very good spirits, and she was able to communicate normally with crew and luckily had minimal pain,” Mr Jones told ABC News.

Responding paramedics rushed her to Hervey Bay Hospital but doctors were unable to safely remove the long metal bar protruding from her neck.

She was flown by the Sunshine Coast-based RACQ LifeFlight Rescue helicopter crew to the Royal Brisbane and Women’s Hospital in a stable condition for further treatment.

RACQ LifeFlight aircrew officer Scott Reeman said the garden tool was about 150 centimetres long and “sticking out of her neck”.

“The metal garden stake was about 150cm long and sticking out of her neck until the hospital medical team cut it back to about 15cm to make it easier to manage her treatment and transfer,” Mr Reeman said

“Whilst falling, the stake has penetrated her neck, which has resulted in quite a significant injury,” he said.

There have yet to be updates from the hospital regarding the woman’s condition. 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Advertisement
Advertisement
Advertisement

Aged care nurse charged for working while COVID-19 positive

Victorian workplace safety watchdog, WorkSafe, has charged an aged care nurse for working while COVID-19 positive and potentially putting residents at risk. Read More

Aged care assault numbers on the rise in New South Wales

Recent data reveals police are visiting an average of 12 aged care homes each day in New South Wales as the number of assaults in NSW residential care reached a decade-high mark. Read More

Great-grandmother waited in the cold for two hours outside emergency department

A 92-year-old who was driven to the hospital by her family because of a lack of ambulances was then forced to spend her mother’s day waiting for two hours in the cold outside of the emergency department. Read More
Advertisement