A rider has thanked the “amazing” air ambulance crew who came to her aid after a nasty fall.
Sammy Smith was knocked unconscious in a fall in a remote part of the Scottish countryside near Fife on Saturday (2 December). Her horse, 15.2hh part-bred Irish draft Donald, was uninjured.
Realising Sammy was seriously hurt, her friends called the emergency services and Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance (SCAA) arrived within minutes.
The pilot managed to land on a narrow path between two wire fences, which would have been difficult to access by road.
Sammy told H&H the helicopter arrived within minutes of the call.
“When I got to hospital the pilot and two of the paramedics stayed with me the whole time,” said Sammy, adding they spoke with medics and managed to save her long riding boots from the scissors.
“They said that if I was going to recognise anyone, it would be the person I saw first and for the longest.
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“[They were] just amazing.”
(Image credit: creditUnknown)
Sammy was diagnosed with concussion and was kept in Ninewells Hospital for eight hours for observation and is now recovering at home.
She said she realises “how lucky” she was not to have been more seriously injured.
“I have a few cuts to my face, but they are healing,” she added.
The meeting was particularly special for H&H blogger Suzanna Hext
The 23-year-old publicly thanked the crew on Facebook to raise awareness of the work they do.
“I’m lucky because I can speak for myself, but sometime people aren’t as lucky as me,” she said.
“I know there have been 70 donations [to the charity] since my fall on Saturday. The power of social media is incredible.”
She added she will also be setting up a monthly direct debit to the SCAA to support the work it does do and thank the service for rescuing her.
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Lucy is an experienced news journalist, reporter and presenter. Since joining the Horse & Hound team in 2015, Lucy has reported from major global sporting events including the Tokyo Paralympic Games and multiple European Championships, as well as Badminton, Burghley and London, to name a few. She has covered current affairs and sports news across the full spectrum of equestrian disciplines and racing, as well as human and equine welfare, industry news and court cases.
