Testimonials

An Unlikely Survival … Dennis Haunschild, Kiska, Alaska, June 2002

On a sunny summer day along the coast of Kiska, Alaska - one of the westernmost islands in the Aleutians – three men working for U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service were conducting a study on bald eagles. Dennis was in his 30’s and was driving the inflatable raft around the bay to collect their data. Jim, in his early-60’s, was the lead researcher for the study, and had been planning this field trip for months. Thomas was a senior biologist for the project, in his mid-50’s, and had also been planning and preparing for the bald-eagle study for the past few months. The trip began smoothly, a nice calm day on the water, with noticeable swells, but no breaking waves and no signs of turbulent weather to be seen.

The skiff rode the swells with ease, bowing down toward the trough and then riding up to the crest, syncing with the vast Bering Sea. As they scanned the shoreline for eagle nests, they spotted an eagle near the beach and decided to maneuver to shore. As Dennis began navigating to shore through a narrow channel of water surrounded by reef, he glanced over his shoulder to see a wave rising six feet high, lifting the raft and flipping it over. All three passengers and everything in the boat plunged into the frigid sea.

Jim and Thomas bobbed up quickly, their float coats lifting their heads above the paralyzing waters. Although Dennis was also wearing a float coat, he submerged under the raft as he fell off the boat, directly under the prop. Three times his head was beat by the relentless thrust of the prop. Finally he pushed away from the rotating metal, blood gushing from his head. The three floated up on the reef and managed to grab hold of the raft to bring it up on the beach.

The gear, most in dry bags, dabbled among in the waves, floating out to sea. The only radio on the boat, however, was not in a dry bag and was now useless. The only hope they had was to try to restart the motor on the raft – the chance of rescue was low and they had no communication.

Dennis was bleeding badly from two major gashes atop his head. The adrenaline and shock he was experiencing kept him calm, but they knew he needed help - quickly. Jim cleaned his wounds while Thomas prepared towels they managed to salvage from a dry bag to wrap around the gaping lesions. Once the towels were wrapped around Dennis’s head, they quickly went to work trying to restart the flooded motor. Jokingly, Jim set off a flare, but the three all knew no one was around to spot them.

Although suffering life-threatening wounds, Dennis persisted to fight to start the motor, the towels on his head completely soaked in blood. He took turns with Jim pulling the chord, but Thomas was starting to become hypothermic and couldn’t help much. They tirelessly pulled the motor chord, losing count after 250 pulls. After two painstaking hours of coaxing and begging the engine to start, they heard the miraculous sound of it revving up! They all hopped in and drove another hour and a half until they reached the main research vessel. As soon as they boarded the vessel Dennis collapsed, his body surrendering to his injury and the weakening force of hypothermia.

The vessel brought them to Adak where they were flown to a hospital in Anchorage. They all suffered severe hypothermia and Dennis had a major head injury. They all survived and recovered fully. Dennis now owns his own business in Alaska.

Interview conducted August 2009.