An off-duty Scots physio has been hailed for saving a man's life while scaling Ben Nevis.
Courtney Ferguson had been tackling the 1,345-meter-high mountain during lockdown in 2020 when she leapt into action to assist a fellow hillwalker. Mid hike, the 27-year-old had spotted Trevor Botwood, 63, leaning into his walking poles before he tumbled forward - hitting his head from the rocks in the process.
Courtney scrambled to reach Trevor, who was climbing the UK's highest peak for the first time with his sister, Irene, in memory of his nephew. He had planned to scale the heights to place his nephew’s photo at the top so that he could be 'one step closer to heaven'.
Unfortunately, on this occasion, it wasn’t to be. Courtney was unable to find a pulse on Trevor and knew urgent treatment was required.
Unbeknown at the time, Trevor had suffered a cardiac arrest.
Courtney, who was climbing the peak with her sister, Brogan, said: “All my previous training just kicked in and I went into autopilot. I managed to get another passer-by to help hold Trevor’s head to aid his airway, while I started doing chest compressions. My sister called 999 and alerted Trevor’s sister who was further down the mountain.”
While on the phone, Brogan had to download the what3words app which gives a unique three-word combination for every three-metre square on Earth. These combinations enable friends or emergency services to locate your exact position.
The swift reactions and expertise shown by Courtney proved to be critical in keeping Trevor alive.
She added: “When Trevor finally regained consciousness, I was able to use what I had learned during my time in ICU throughout the Covid pandemic, and knelt behind him holding him until the helicopter got there as he was quite distressed. It felt like it had only been around ten minutes, but actually I carried out chest compressions for nearly 20 minutes.”
Trevor was airlifted by helicopter to the Queen Elizabeth University Hospital ( QUEH ) in Glasgow for treatment and later was transferred to a hospital in his hometown of Leeds, where he made a full recovery. Since the incident, the pair have kept in touch and have become good friends - with both making the journey across the border to spend time in each other’s hometowns.
Trevor said: “I owe my life to Courtney, she’s a beautiful person inside and out. I was nervous about seeing her again for the first time after the accident. My wife and I travelled to Edinburgh to meet Courtney and Brogan and we just instantly hit it off. She is now part of our extended family.”
On the August 6, the duo took a second attempt at hiking Ben Nevis together alongside friends and family to raise cash for the Mountain Rescue service.
Trevor added: “I decided that in order to move on and put the incident to bed I had to try and climb Ben Nevis again. I am usually a fit and healthy person and go on many walks - it just so happened that on that day in 2020 something went wrong.
“Heading back up Ben Nevis with Courtney two years after she saved my life felt really special. If it wasn’t for her and her swift actions, I wouldn’t be here today. It was brilliant to finally reach the top, it was like a big weight had been lifted off my shoulders.
“We’ll be planning our next trip to meet Courtney and her family again soon.”
Scottish Mountain Rescue is the community of 25 member Mountain Rescue Teams. The teams deliver a world class Search and Rescue (SAR) Service and respond to requests from Police Scotland.
Lean more about Scottish Mountain Rescue here.
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