A 41-year-old father-of-two had to be put on a ventilator after he miraculously survived being stuck in a 15 foot deep ravine for multiple nights without food.
Ian Goodsell, who lives on the big island of Hawaii, was crossing an old bridge near a forest off Kamaili Road when it collapsed underneath him, KITV reported.
‘He fell into a ravine about 15 feet deep and was in there for three nights,’ said Garrett Goodsell, Ian’s brother.
Based on what they’ve heard so far, the family believes Goodsell was able to survive as long as he did by using a tank top to soak up any available water to drink. His brother also thinks he stayed strong for the sake of his two sons.
‘He has two young boys and I think he just held on to the idea of them not knowing that their dad died in a ditch. I think that he just held on to the love for his children and that kept him alive long enough to find someone to save him,’ Garrett Goodsell said.
Ian Goodsell, pictured, narrowly survived falling into a 15 foot ravine in Hawaii. He was stuck down there for three nights until his screams managed to be heard by someone
Goodsell, center, fell through the weak bridge around three days before August 21, when he was rescued
Since Goodsell has serious injuries that mostly preclude him from communicating, the family isn’t entirely sure why he was out there.
Alta Goodsell, Ian Goodsell’s ex-wife, said she believes he was out on land he was taking care of. She isn’t sure if he was in the process of clearing a trail or doing something else.
‘I still don’t know any of the details. I know that he said he had numerous seizures while he was down there. He has epilepsy medicine he takes every day and didn’t have access to that so he was there having seizures. I know it rained a lot, thankfully it was before the hurricane,’ Alta Goodsell explained.
Goodsell was discovered by a passerby on August 21, while Hurricane Hona delivered 85 mph winds and limited flash floods to the island on August 25, missing him by four days.
When the passerby heard Goodsell’s screams for help, they alerted the authorities.
Brother Garrett Goodsell and ex-wife Alta Goodsell were both extremely happy that Ian was alive, with them both saying he had epileptic seizures while down in the ravine
A GoFundMe has been created by a family member to help pay for Goodsell’s recovery. So far, it’s raised $9,414 toward its $10,000 goal
Firefighters responded quickly after and sounded their sirens to let him know they were there to rescue him.
They found him 600 feet from the road.
‘He had just enough energy to tell them that he had been down there for three nights and he had been having seizures down there,’ Garrett said.
‘They had to intubate him when he got into the hospital because basically, his body just shut down. They put him on a ventilator. He was like that for a week.’
Goodsell is off the ventilator now but is struggling to speak.
Hawaii Fire Department Deputy Fire Chief Daniel Volpe warned other hikers about the dangers of travelling alone on potentially treacherous paths
The approximate location where the bridge collapsed underneath Goodsell
‘The ER nurse described it as having full body wounds, full body bruising, and acute liver damage from severe dehydration. He had really bad pneumonia, and he was having a hard time breathing on his own,’ Garrett said.
Hawaii Fire Department Deputy Fire Chief Daniel Volpe took an opportunity to warn other hikers about the dangers of travelling alone on potentially treacherous paths.
‘If you’re gonna go hiking, and this wasn’t necessarily a hiking trail, and even more so if you’re gonna go out there, make sure you stick to the trails, as much as possible,’ Volpe said. ‘Don’t hike alone, make sure you let people know where you’re going and kind of when you expect to be back.’
A GoFundMe has been created by a family member to help pay for Goodsell’s recovery. So far, it’s raised $9,414 toward its $10,000 goal.