A young Edinburgh physiotherapist has become best friends with the man whose life she saved while climbing Ben Nevis.
Courtney Ferguson, 27, was able to jump into action and give vital CPR after she noticed a fellow hillwalker getting into trouble on Scotland's highest peak.
Heading up during the pandemic in 2020, Courtney and her sister Brogan had been completing a number of munros when they headed for Ben Nevis in August.
READ MORE - Edinburgh family devastated after thieves break in and take treasured war medals
Taking on the challenge, the sisters had been walking nearby to 63-year-old Trevor Botwood and his sister Irene, in memory of his beloved nephew.
Hoping to place his nephew's photo at the top so he could be “one step closer to heaven", plans quickly changed when Trevor took a dangerous fall.
Speaking about the experience, Courtney, a physio in Bonnyrigg said: “The mountain was busy with tourists, everyone was encouraging one another to keep on going. I saw a man around the halfway point leaning into his walking poles, I stopped to offer some encouragement when he tumbled forwards hitting his head off the rocks.”
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.
“All my previous training just kicked in and I went into autopilot”, Courtney explained, ”I managed to get another passerby to help hold Trevor’s head to aid his airway, while I started doing chest compressions. My sister, Brogan called 999 and alerted Trevor’s sister who was further down the mountain.”
Whilst 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 were 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-19 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 flown to the Queen Elizabeth Hospital 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, Trevor and Courtney have kept in touch and 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 August 6, 2022, the pair decided to hike up Ben Nevis together along with their friends and family to raise money 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. 850 volunteers respond in a moment’s notice, 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to provide assistance to people in the outdoors.
Learn more about what the team do here.
READ NEXT-
Edinburgh hotel hits back after English guest rages at view from £370-a-night room
The cheapest time to use your washing machine every day to keep energy bills low
Martin Lewis announces which fixed energy customers will get their bills reduced
Age groups hit hardest by cost of living crisis and who gets full State Pension
Experts share what Meghan Markle appeared to say while reading Queen's tributes
