{"id":7162,"date":"2020-12-27T20:10:04","date_gmt":"2020-12-28T01:10:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/?p=7162"},"modified":"2020-12-27T20:14:28","modified_gmt":"2020-12-28T01:14:28","slug":"fwd-episode-210-new-zealand-air-ambulance-needed-andrew-skeoch-head-on-collision","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/?p=7162","title":{"rendered":"Fwd: EPISODE 210 “NEW ZEALAND AIR AMBULANCE NEEDED” (ANDREW SKEOCH, HEAD ON COLLISION)"},"content":{"rendered":"

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Begin forwarded message:<\/div>\n


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From: <\/b><\/span>ALAN SKEOCH <alan.skeoch@rogers.com<\/a><\/a>>
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Subject: <\/b><\/span>EPISODE 210 “NEW ZEALAND AIR AMBULANCE NEEDED” (ANDREW SKEOCH, HEAD ON COLLISION)<\/b>
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Date: <\/b><\/span>December 27, 2020 at 7:41:44 PM EST
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To: <\/b><\/span>Alan Skeoch <alan.skeoch@rogers.com<\/a><\/a>>, Marjorie Skeoch <marjorieskeoch@gmail.com<\/a><\/a>>, askeoch@bellnet.ca<\/a><\/a>
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EPISODE 210    ” NEW  ZEALAND AIR AMBULANCE NEEDED\u201d  <\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
alan skeoch<\/div>\n
Dec 2020<\/div>\n

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Dateline:  Dec. 1992<\/div>\n
Place:  90 mile beach, Cape Rainga, North Island, New Zealand<\/div>\n

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\u201cChrist Almighty\u2026there going to hit us head on!\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cKABOOM\u2026\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cJESUS\u2026JESUS\u2026ANYONE DEAD?\u201d<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

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WE loved that car\u2026but it was scrap in the twinkling of an eye.<\/div>\n

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\u201cChrist Almighty\u2026there going to hit us head on!\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cKABOOM\u2026\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cJESUS\u2026JESUS\u2026ANYONE DEAD?\u201d<\/div>\n

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Excuse the profanity if you can.  People in crisis often appeal to Jesus whether they<\/div>\n
are believers or not.  Two cars smashing together on a New Zealand near empty <\/div>\n
 highway should have  been  deadly.  Head on!  Head light to headlight\u2026engine to<\/div>\n
engine.  Glass shattered by heads hitting.  Metal folding like cardboard.  Blood flowing<\/div>\n
like water.  Voices screaming for the Almighty.  Jesus!  Jesus! Both cars held young people<\/div>\n
who were fit.  Bashed, broken, bleeding \u2026 all alive but needing medical treatment<\/div>\n
immediately.  This was not a good place for a head  on collision.  Not that<\/div>\n
there is ever a good place for that.   Andrew Skeoch and  Keith Merker along<\/div>\n
with two girlfriends had  been windsurfing on 90 mile beach on the west coast<\/div>\n
of New Zealand\u2019s North Island.  Carefree.  Two Canadian  boys on their chosen<\/div>\n
world  tour.  Two New Zealand  girls enjoying the exhilaration of youth.  No one<\/div>\n
dead but injuries were grievous.  Four Kiwis in the other car\u2026girl with broken arm.<\/div>\n

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\u201cHello, Air Ambulance!  Get a chopper up to tip of 90 mile beach right away.<\/div>\n
Car accident.  Head  on for Christ\u2019s sake.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cHow many hurt?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cThey are all hurt but three girls need to get to Auckland fast.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cAnd the boys?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cSend an ambulance\u2026quick. Two Canadian lads.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cIt will take hours to get there and get back to hospital.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cWe are stabilizing the  boys.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cWho is speaking?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cPolice Officer Clark”<\/div>\n
\u201cPolice  Officer?\u2019\u201d<\/div>\n

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\u201cArchie Moore\u2026\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cAre you sure you’re OK?\u201d  Any others hurt?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cEveryone was hurt.  Joanne has a broken jaw.  <\/div>\n

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\u201cHow did it happen?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cLooks like one  car was rounding a hairpin on wrong side of the road.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cCanadians?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cNo, Kiwis\u2026\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cSounds like it could have been fatal.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cBloody true\u2026lucky the cars were big\u2026some  protection.   And the kids are fit.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cAny danger of delayed shock?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t think so\u2026that danger was  over long ago.  They were not <\/div>\n
found  for a couple of hours.  All  are conscious.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u2018We\u2019ll send an investigator\u2026mind if a reporter tags along?<\/div>\n
\u201cNo\u2026get a move on, goddamnit.”<\/div>\n

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Marjorie and I did not get a phone call from Andrew  until a couple of  days had<\/div>\n
passed.  He  wanted us to know.  Nothing hidden.  Feared over reaction.<\/div>\n

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 But both he and Keith were hurt<\/div>\n
and in the Aukland  hospital.  To phone right away, he  felt, would cause panic back home.<\/div>\n
In the meantime the boys had to make a big decision.  They could be flown back to Canada.<\/div>\n
Insurance covered that if necessary.  Two days passed by  and  they were mending.  Andy had<\/div>\n
his nose nearly severed and  Keith had the steering column rammed into his lower body.  Injuries that<\/div>\n
seems bad when their heads went through the windshield.  But two days later seemed OK.<\/div>\n

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CHRISTMAS DAY 1992<\/div>\n

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\u201cHi Mom, how are things back  home.  All ready for Christmas i bet.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cOh, Andrew, how nice to hear from you.  How is the world adventure going?\u201d\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cBit of a problem.  We got in a car accident\u2026\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cNooooo!\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cBut we are fine.  Bruised\u2026mending.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cAny others hurt?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cEveryone hurt\u2026some worse than others.  Joanne has a broken jaw.  Claire<\/div>\n
has a lot of soft tissue injuries.  Both girls and one from the other car flown to<\/div>\n
Auckland by air ambulance.  The car is a write off.”<\/div>\n

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BEFORE THE HEAD ON COLLISION<\/div>\n

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ON Oct. 7, 1992, both of our sons left home.  To say it was a surprise is an understatement.<\/div>\n
Kevin had  taken a job with the American School teaching English in Bratislava, Slovakia.<\/div>\n
The Soviet Union had just collapsed and Eastern Europe was in chaos.  Most citizens  of<\/div>\n
Slovakia were looking westward to places like Canada and the United States for help. Most.<\/div>\n
Not all.  There still remained many supporters of the communist ideal.  We felt Kevin was<\/div>\n
stepping into a morass.  As he was.<\/div>\n

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Andrew, on the other hand, and his friend  Keith Merker had decided to head westward. <\/div>\n
\u201cWhere are you going, Andrew?\u201d <\/div>\n
‘ Across Canada, down to Los Angeles  and then<\/div>\n
across the Pacific\u2026island hopping to New Zealand.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u2018Money?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cWe have some.  Get jobs  along the way.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cSounds a little chancy.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cif I get in a tight corner, I will call.\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cNo car?\u201d<\/div>\n
\u201cWe will buy wrecks\u2026cars  heading for the scrap heap.\u201d<\/div>\n

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And they did.  One car they bought in the U.S. had no side<\/div>\n
windows so when they dropped  in on Victor Poppa\u2019s place in California he<\/div>\n
made them Wooden windows.   On a side venture to Arizona they <\/div>\n
were advised  to get out of the state by a friendly police officer. \u201cStick around<\/div>\n
here with that car and meet a different cop\u2026you will wish you never heard<\/div>\n
of Arizona.”<\/div>\n
John Steinbeck, were he still alive, would have added a  chapter<\/div>\n
in either East of Eden  or the Grapes  of Wrath.<\/div>\n

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Island hopping across the Pacific\u2026Figi and so many others\u2026turning<\/div>\n
to road kill for supper on one occasion.  Never cooked the thing though<\/div>\n
the thought seriously about it.  Island hopping.<\/div>\n

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This was the way they ended up at 90 mile beach on the North Island<\/div>\n
of New Zealand.  Let me tell the story from Andrew\u2019s own words.<\/div>\n

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\u201cWe bought the four door Ford for $2,000 which was all the<\/div>\n
money we had.   No worries for we felt we could sell it for<\/div>\n
that money or more when we were done.  It was a great car for<\/div>\n
a surfing holiday.  We met Joanne and Claire and  pooled  our <\/div>\n
resources.   We had the car. They had  the food  money. Nice <\/div>\n
girls who had  won a lottery. Surfed all  day in shark water..<\/div>\n
We drove for miles up the beach\u2026as far north as we could go<\/div>\n
to Cape Rainga.  Car got stuck trying to clear a sand dune<\/div>\n
 so we had take a run at the dune to bust out onto the road.<\/div>\n

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Then one hour later on a hairpin curve a New Zealander was cutting<\/div>\n
the curve  and hit us dead  on.  I flew through the wndow cutting my nostril<\/div>\n
in half.  Keith crumpled the steering wheel  with his body and  sliced his kneecap.<\/div>\n
Joanne  broke her jaw on the head rest.   Claire had soft tissue injuries to<\/div>\n
most of her body.   In the other car a girl in back seat broke her arm.  Boys<\/div>\n
in front were protected by the seat belts.  I know..I know..we  should have buckled.<\/div>\n

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We collided at 6 p.m. but did not get help until two hours later.  No traffic up<\/div>\n
Road ends at the ocean\u2026goes nowhere. Eventually some cars came. Wrapped<\/div>\n
girls in bedrolls\u2026chills, maybe shock.   Policeman named Archie Clark came and called for an air<\/div>\n
ambulance for the girls and ground ambulance for Keith and me.  We did not<\/div>\n
reach hospital until midnight.  Next day there was an article about the crash<\/div>\n
in the Aukland Herald.<\/div>\n

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The investigation concluded we were not at fault (which is easy to see in photos).<\/div>\n
We then had to decide whether to head back  to Canada or wait out the injuries<\/div>\n
and continue.   I waited a few days before calling you.  Afraid to spoil your Christmas.<\/div>\n
Then Archie Clark offered to take  us to his farm over Christmas.  He found us<\/div>\n
jobs and fed us.  Boar hunting with his sons.  After that we headed for the south island and then over to<\/div>\n
Australia.  You sent us some money and we made a little washing storefront <\/div>\n
windows wherever we  went.  All we needed was a couple of  squeegees and<\/div>\n
a pail.   <\/div>\n

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The girls?  We never  saw them again although I keep in touch with<\/div>\n
Joanne on Facebook.   Both girls are married with children as are  Keith <\/div>\n
and me.  I wonder  if  there are many police  officers like  Archie Clark.”<\/div>\n

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FACEBOOK NOTE FROM JOANNE<\/div>\n

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Hi Andy, 
You havent changed a bit!!!I found my box of travelling stuff in the loft yesterday and thought i would see if i could find anyone! Hard to beleive it was over 18 years ago. It was only last year that i had to have jaw surgery to correct my bite since the crash. Hows your nose?
Do you still see Keith. I see Claire, she lives around the corner from me and our children go to the same school. She is still travelling all over the world as an air hostess for BA. She is married to Andy has Ben whos 10 and Jessica who is 7. 
How is life with you? I see from your photo you are still surfing!!!
Love to hear from you
Love Jo<\/div>\n

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WHEN MARJORIE AND I TOOK ANDREW  TO NEW ZEALAND\u2026hardly any danger of a speeding collision<\/div>\n

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Kiwi birds are hard to find.  This one was attracted to the beer bottle between my legs I think.<\/div>\n

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Campgrounds in New Zealand are wonderful\u2026full kitchens.<\/div>\n
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That was sometime around  1993.  The years when the Soviet Union was collapsing.  We were able to experience<\/div>\n
the collapse first hand when our other son, Kevin, called to ask  us over to Slovakia for a week\u2026which also<\/div>\n
turned out to be a grand adventure.<\/div>\n

<\/div>\n
alan skeoch<\/div>\n
Dec. 1990<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n


<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Begin forwarded message: From: ALAN SKEOCH <alan.skeoch@rogers.com> Subject: EPISODE 210 “NEW ZEALAND AIR AMBULANCE NEEDED” (ANDREW SKEOCH, HEAD ON COLLISION) Date: December 27, 2020 at 7:41:44 PM EST To: Alan Skeoch <alan.skeoch@rogers.com>, Marjorie Skeoch <marjorieskeoch@gmail.com>, askeoch@bellnet.ca EPISODE 210    ” NEW  ZEALAND AIR AMBULANCE NEEDED\u201d   alan skeoch Dec 2020 Dateline:  Dec. 1992 Place:  90 […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7162","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7162","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=7162"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7162\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=7162"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=7162"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/alanskeoch.ca\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=7162"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}