Who: 52-year-old David Fitzherbert
Where: Matterhorn and Monterosa Peaks, Swiss Alps
His mistake: Doesn’t look like there were mistakes. He just didn’t see a crevasse.
What happened: A man skiing with a mountain guide skied right into a crevasse 70 feet deep when the extra half-inch of the Blackberry phone in his breast pocket stopped him from falling further. In the fall, the man broke his jaw and a chest bone. He also damaged his teeth and his nose was almost ripped off of his face.
The man was stuck in the crevasse for two hours while his mountain guide called for help. Rescuers responded to the scene and were forced to drill the ice around the man to free him. The man was suffering from hypothermia since he was wedged so tight in the ice.
Eventually, a chopper was able to winch the man to safety. Amazingly enough, the man’s Blackberry still worked, despite the impact and exposure to the freezing elements. The man was able to use the phone to speak with his wife during the 10 days he was recovering in a local hospital.
Read the story here.
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