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Thanks to a super fast response from NSW Ambulance Service, and a quick RFDS flight down to Sydney, David survived his terrifying ordeal.

“I was chopping down an old apple tree in the garden when the chainsaw jammed,” explains David, who has served on the RFDS Board
for almost eight years. “As I pulled it free the tip of the blade caught on the tree, the chainsaw swung across and the blade hit my leg.”
In an instant the chainsaw sliced through David’s leg, from just above his ankle to behind his knee, cutting into calf muscle, arteries and nerves, right down to the bone. David was bleeding profusely.

“There was no way I could make it back to the house,” he says. “Thankfully I had my mobile on me. I dialled 000 and the operator stayed on the line until the ambulance arrived. They drove 15 kilometres in less than five minutes. They saved my life.”

By the time the ambulance arrived David had lost an estimated 2.5 litres of blood.
“I must have lost consciousness because the next thing I remember was being loaded onto a plane and waking up to see RFDS
pilot Ashley Myles peering down at me.”

The RFDS flight took David down to Sydney, where he spent five days at the Royal North Shore Hospital. After six
months of rehab and intensive physiotherapy David is now on the mend.

“I want to thank all those involved in my rescue, especially the ambulance staff. They were absolutely
fantastic.”