Dear Curling Friends.
On Thursday February 6th, 2025, between 5:30 and 6:00 pm, moments after delivering a takeout with my stick, I lost my balance and fell backwards on the ice. The sound of my helmet cracking under the back of my head was deafening. My first thought was “what the heck just happened?!”
Fortunately, I felt okay. No pain, just dazed, and I could feel a headache developing. Lots of caring fellow curlers and Tam staff descended to help get me up and get to the lounge. Karen called 911 and helped gather my belongings.
The competent Paramedics arrived within a reasonable 15-20 minutes. Their assessment was thorough. “Rate your pain from 1 to 10” they asked. Luckily, I could answer “one” due to the headache coming on. I didn’t even have any tender spots on the back of my head. A neck brace was placed around my neck. After answering the question “how old are you?” I was told that I was going to the hospital for testing. It’s protocol for anyone over 65, falling from an upright position, to go to the ER for testing.
The Paramedics were directed to Centenary, a very short drive from Tam. The first words spoken by the triage nurse were “congratulations for wearing a helmet”.
The ER doctor arrived in about an hour. He was one busy dude. He ordered a CT scan of my head and neck to see if there was any bleeding or fractured vertebrae.
In about 25 minutes he handed me a written report and offered to remove the uncomfortable neck brace (yes please!). No damage from the fall. Whew.
The round trip from Tam by ambulance to home by a family member was under 4 hours. I felt that I was well cared for by everyone at Tam, fellow curlers and staff, Paramedics and all the very busy hospital staff who were efficient, thorough and professional. Thank you all!
And one final very big “thank you” to my helmet for saving me.
Anne Jackson
