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CNN Saturday Morning News

Interview With Steve Swanke

Aired May 03, 2003 - 09:13   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.


MEADE: The Aspen hiker who amputated his own arm after being pinned by a boulder remains in serious condition this morning, but given the courage that he's shown so far, people say that they're confident that he'll not only recover but return to his active lifestyle.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SGT. MITCH VETERE, EMERY COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE: I have never seen nothing like this in my career. Yes, he's obviously got a will to live.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MEADE: Well, what a will indeed.

Joining us now on the phone with the very latest on Aron Ralston is Steve Swanke. He is the supervising park ranger at Canyonlands National Park, where this story played out.

Nice of you to join us this morning, do appreciate it, Steve.

Steve, you know, the hiker who amputated his arm, did he have any other choice at survival, do you know?

STEVE SWANKE, CANYONLANDS SUPERVISING PARK RANGER: Well, his choice was to remain in his fixed location, and he then he would have just had to bet that someone was going to be looking for him, and probably hoping that they would find him soon, because undoubtedly his strength was diminishing, based on the fact that he had been out for five nights and six days.

MEADE: Such a long time. I know you weren't present at the rescue, correct,? But you were on the ground running things there. And I know stories have probably floated back about how he acted once he was rescued. Did he say, you know, where he got the grit to actually do this?

SWANKE: Well, he didn't talk about that. He was just very factual in his presentation of information. He wanted me to know that he had bled extensively, wanted me to know that a tourniquet had been applied to his arm. And he walked from the helicopter into the emergency room in the hospital here in Moab and then laid down on a bed.

MEADE: That's incredible. You know, he's described as an avid outdoorsman who was in shape. So what's the latest on what you know about how he's doing?

MEADE: He's in fair condition at Saint Mary's Hospital in Grand Junction, Colorado.

MEADE: OK, we'll have to call and check on that. Certainly we do wish him the best. You know, how remote of an area is Blue John Canyon in Utah, where he was?

SWANKE: It's extremely remote. The trailhead, where he parked his vehicle, is two and a half hours from park headquarters here in Moab, Utah. You would have to travel 30 miles down a dirt road from the closest pavement to reach the trailhead that he parked his car to start this trip.

He then hopped on his mountain bike and mountain-biked approximately 15 miles, dropped his mountain bike, began hiking, and was about five minutes -- or five miles into his hiking-slash- canyoneering expedition when the accident occurred.

MEADE: You know, what, Steve, what kind of reputation does Aron have in the area? Does he have an area -- a reputation of being a kind of a daredevil, and does all this kind of go along with how he's known?

SWANKE: Well, I don't have knowledge that he's a daredevil. I have knowledge that he's an avid outdoors person in exceptional physical condition, and exceptionally stable mentally, that he is known to have climbed many of the 14,000-foot peaks in Colorado, and that he was preparing for an upcoming expedition to Dinali National Park in Alaska.

MEADE: All right, Supervising Park Ranger Steve Swanke, thank you so much for your insights on what happened. Do appreciate it.

SWANKE: Thank you.

MEADE: Well, you know, Aron Ralston is not the first person faced with the grisly prospect of having to cut off a limb to save your life -- in his life. In 1993, Bill Jeracki (ph) legs became trapped underneath a boulder while he was fishing in western Colorado. Now, with the weather turning bad, Jeracki amputated his leg below the knee using a three-inch pocket knife.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com







Aired May 3, 2003 - 09:13   ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MEADE: The Aspen hiker who amputated his own arm after being pinned by a boulder remains in serious condition this morning, but given the courage that he's shown so far, people say that they're confident that he'll not only recover but return to his active lifestyle.
(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SGT. MITCH VETERE, EMERY COUNTY SHERIFF'S OFFICE: I have never seen nothing like this in my career. Yes, he's obviously got a will to live.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

MEADE: Well, what a will indeed.

Joining us now on the phone with the very latest on Aron Ralston is Steve Swanke. He is the supervising park ranger at Canyonlands National Park, where this story played out.

Nice of you to join us this morning, do appreciate it, Steve.

Steve, you know, the hiker who amputated his arm, did he have any other choice at survival, do you know?

STEVE SWANKE, CANYONLANDS SUPERVISING PARK RANGER: Well, his choice was to remain in his fixed location, and he then he would have just had to bet that someone was going to be looking for him, and probably hoping that they would find him soon, because undoubtedly his strength was diminishing, based on the fact that he had been out for five nights and six days.

MEADE: Such a long time. I know you weren't present at the rescue, correct,? But you were on the ground running things there. And I know stories have probably floated back about how he acted once he was rescued. Did he say, you know, where he got the grit to actually do this?

SWANKE: Well, he didn't talk about that. He was just very factual in his presentation of information. He wanted me to know that he had bled extensively, wanted me to know that a tourniquet had been applied to his arm. And he walked from the helicopter into the emergency room in the hospital here in Moab and then laid down on a bed.

MEADE: That's incredible. You know, he's described as an avid outdoorsman who was in shape. So what's the latest on what you know about how he's doing?

MEADE: He's in fair condition at Saint Mary's Hospital in Grand Junction, Colorado.

MEADE: OK, we'll have to call and check on that. Certainly we do wish him the best. You know, how remote of an area is Blue John Canyon in Utah, where he was?

SWANKE: It's extremely remote. The trailhead, where he parked his vehicle, is two and a half hours from park headquarters here in Moab, Utah. You would have to travel 30 miles down a dirt road from the closest pavement to reach the trailhead that he parked his car to start this trip.

He then hopped on his mountain bike and mountain-biked approximately 15 miles, dropped his mountain bike, began hiking, and was about five minutes -- or five miles into his hiking-slash- canyoneering expedition when the accident occurred.

MEADE: You know, what, Steve, what kind of reputation does Aron have in the area? Does he have an area -- a reputation of being a kind of a daredevil, and does all this kind of go along with how he's known?

SWANKE: Well, I don't have knowledge that he's a daredevil. I have knowledge that he's an avid outdoors person in exceptional physical condition, and exceptionally stable mentally, that he is known to have climbed many of the 14,000-foot peaks in Colorado, and that he was preparing for an upcoming expedition to Dinali National Park in Alaska.

MEADE: All right, Supervising Park Ranger Steve Swanke, thank you so much for your insights on what happened. Do appreciate it.

SWANKE: Thank you.

MEADE: Well, you know, Aron Ralston is not the first person faced with the grisly prospect of having to cut off a limb to save your life -- in his life. In 1993, Bill Jeracki (ph) legs became trapped underneath a boulder while he was fishing in western Colorado. Now, with the weather turning bad, Jeracki amputated his leg below the knee using a three-inch pocket knife.

TO ORDER A VIDEO OF THIS TRANSCRIPT, PLEASE CALL 800-CNN-NEWS OR USE OUR SECURE ONLINE ORDER FORM LOCATED AT www.fdch.com