07/09/2008

Associated Press

A 14-year-old surfer had his left arm reattached by surgeons following a collision with a dory boat near Pacific City.

Dr. Steven Madey, a surgeon at Portland's Legacy Emanuel Hospital, said Tuesday it may take months to know whether Cole Ortega of Bend will regain use of the arm, which had been severed just above the elbow.

But he said the arm wouldn't have been reattached at all if not for the efforts of numerous people after Sunday's incident. The boyfriend of Ortega's sister applied a tourniquet and another surfer recovered the severed limb that was quickly put on ice. Madey also credited an emergency room physician who happened to be on the beach and the teams responsible for rushing the boy to Portland.

"It's chaos, and then everybody did what they were supposed to do in chaos," Madey said at a press conference in Portland that included Ortega's father and sister.

Charlie Ortega thanked everyone who helped his son.

"For the level of injury, having your arm completely severed, he's doing very well," Ortega said. "It's a hard thing to grasp, for a 14-year-old."

Tillamook County Sheriff Todd Anderson said his department is investigating whether to cite anyone for the incident. A sheriff's deputy, Charles Reeder, said the area where the collision took place has become busier in recent years.

"You've got windsurfers (and) surfers. You've got hang gliders (and) people waiting on the shore line. You've got all kinds of different user groups down there," Reeder said. "You've got swimmers, too, and kayakers. And when you put all of those together in one spot, it doesn't always work out."

The operator of the dory, Darrell Martin, 55, of Beaver, could not be reached for comment, but a witness who said he spoke with Martin on the beach said the man was in shock and expressed extreme remorse.

Charlie Ortega acknowledged Martin at Tuesday's press conference.

"Our prayers are with him as well," Ortega said. "He's living the nightmare. It was a nightmare for everybody."

Frank Lippy, the emergency room doctor who treated Ortega at the beach, told The Oregonian newspaper that the boy's wetsuit helped preserve the limb, which was wrapped in sterile gauze, put in plastic bag and then placed on ice.

Dories have been launching and landing directly off the beach at Cape Kiwanda for decades, part of the local tourist and fishing lore. But surfers and other users have started to appear there in greater numbers.

A witness, Ned Brewer, 51, of Portland, said he has been surfing at Pacific City since 1992. He said Sunday started out with a small swell, ideal to launch the dories, and most of the surfers were actually away from that spot, working beach break waves.

After the dories had launched, he said, the swell rose dramatically, luring the surfers back to catch the best waves in a channel where the boats launch. The high swell also meant that dories needed to start coming into shore, bringing everyone together.

He was in a line of about 20 surfers when suddenly a friend appeared next to him, saying he was almost hit by a boat. The surfer told Brewer, "I could feel the prop go over my legs."

Moments later, there was yelling.

"I heard someone scream, 'Oh, my god!' and I started paddling toward him," Brewer said.

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Information from: The Oregonian, http://www.oregonlive.com