An Oregon man who accidentally drove off an embankment and spent the night at the bottom of a steep ravine was saved after one of his dogs ran 4 miles for help.
Brandon Garrett was driving with his four dogs along Hells Canyon Scenic Byway, a two-land paved road that winds through the Wallowa Mountains, when he failed to “negotiate a curve” last week. That caused Garrett’s car to plummet off the embankment on June 2, according to a news release from the Baker County Sheriff’s Office.
One of Garrett’s dogs, named Blue, ran 4 miles to a campsite where Garrett and his brother had been staying. Blue arrived to “alert the rest of the party that something was wrong,” the sheriff’s office said.
Garrett spent the night in the woods, setting up camp about 100 yards away from his car.
Garrett’s family members were able to find Garrett’s car the next morning but couldn’t reach him because of the extreme terrain. That’s when they called authorities.
Here’s what we know.
Garrett’s brother reached out to the Baker County Sheriff’s Office the morning on June 3, telling them that Garrett did not make it to camp.
He told them that they had found Garrett’s car but were unable to make contact. A number of agencies, including the sheriff’s office, made their way to the crash site. Baker County Sheriff Travis Ash soon found Garrett and his three other dogs alive at the crash site.
Ash administered first aid as volunteers began to carve a path to Garrett with chainsaws.
Then, members of the search and rescue team “began the difficult task of reaching Garrett,” using a highline rope system to load and secure him into a rescue basket before being pulled across the ravine, the sheriff’s office said.
Garrett was airlifted to a regional hospital. Baker County sheriff’s spokesperson Ashley McClay told USA TODAY on Monday that Garrett was out of the hospital and is at home recovering.
It didn’t take long for Garrett’s rescue to gain some traction, with many giving Blue high praise in the comment section of the sheriff’s post detailing the rescue.
“Amazing,” Farrah Huff Chastain said. “Somebody get that dog a bone, he saved his person.”
Sharon Foster Bessey called Blue’s actions “unbelievable.”
“That dog deserves a medal for that!!!!” she said. “And then to find everyone alive and rescued, that is a wonderful ending to the story!”
