The six Littleton Boy Scouts who hiked up Massey Draw back in November 2010 were prepared. They had water, first aid kits, ropes, cell phones and even snake bite kits.
But little could have completely readied them for Chris Barton’s 120-foot fall.
“It was pretty scary,” said fellow Scout Jeremy McCombs, 19, who watched his friend tumble down the mountain. “All I can remember actually thinking is, ‘Please don’t stop breathing.'”
Thursday night, McCombs received the Lifesaving Award from the Boy Scouts of America for the swift actions he took that day nearly two years ago.
The group had planned on bouldering — free climbing without ropes. But Barton had gotten lost and ended up in a rough area where he lost his grip, McCombs recounted.
“When someone stops breathing,” McCombs said. “That’s probably one of the scariest things I can think about dealing with.”
Barton moved in and out of consciousness — his face, head, arms, legs and hip bleeding. His femoral artery had been nicked and first responders would take 45 minutes to reach the scene.
McCombs used bandanas to keep pressure on Barton’s wounds and continuously talked to him in efforts to keep him conscious.
“I learned all of my first-aid training through the Boy Scouts,” McCombs said.
A Flight for Life helicopter eventually evacuated Barton. The whole process took about 5 ½ hours. Barton had numerous broken bones and a concussion from the fall — injuries that took four surgeries and a month in the hospital to heal.
McCombs never left Barton’s side.
It was a full year after the event when McCombs said he heard news that the Boy Scouts would award him an honor medal.
“It’s a really great feeling to be acknowledged for something along these lines,” McCombs said.
McCombs graduated from Columbine High School in 2011. In the fall he will start Emergency Medical Technician classes at Arapahoe Community College — a career decision he attributes to participation in the Boy Scouts since fifth grade.
“Scouting does save lives,” McCombs said. “It works and it’s living proof that we can do great things.”
Tegan Hanlon: 303-954-1729, thanlon@denverpost.com
