Road to Recovery
Madison
Regatta accident victims
struggle to cope with injuries
Madison’s
Cutshall in rehab and responsive
but has a long road ahead, his family says
"It’s
tough because he can’t talk,
but his eyes tell stories."
– Stew Cutshall, Chris’ father
By
Don Ward
Editor
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October
2011 |
MADISON, Ind. (October 2011) – Laura Cutshall was
at home on Sunday, July 3, with her 10-year-old son, Austin – 14
miles away from downtown Madison – when she got the phone
call around 3:30 p.m. There had been an accident at the Madison Regatta,
and her husband, Chris, a volunteer safety-rescue worker, had been aboard
the tiny boat that was destroyed in a freak collision with an Unlimited
hydroplane that had veered off course during a late afternoon heat race.
“I just broke down and cried,” she said. “I felt so helpless.”
Only minutes before, she had received a call from her mother-in-law,
Nancy Cutshall, Chris’ mother, asking if she knew which boat Chris
was on that day. Nancy was home babysitting and heard about the accident
over the two-way radio used by safety-rescue workers. She did not know
at that time that her son was involved.
But the news would arrive quickly for both women as the events unfolded
that would change their lives – and Chris’ life – forever.
Chris Cutshall, 31, and two others – Michael Brand, 46, of Middletown,
Ohio, and Angela Greenwell, 34, of Louisville, Ky., were in the path
of the U-21 Unlimited Miss Lakeridge Paving, driven by 26-year-old Brian
Perkins of North Road, Wash., and there was no escape. Perkins apparently
had hit a wake and missed the entry and exit buoys of Turn 1 on the
westernmost end of the oval race course, and he was attempting to cut
through the infield to come back around to take the turn again.
But something went tragically wrong.
Perkins, running up on plane at about half speed, according to Brand,
drove his turbine-powered race boat into a safety area of the infield
and plowed right into the small custom-built, 8x16-foot, metal, open
bow “barge” that the Regatta uses to set up the race course.
“The barge has no protection – just a large canopy, console
and a reinforcement bar – or “butt bar,” as we call it,”
Brand said in a Sept. 20 telephone interview. “There was no time
to think about what to do or to even jump when we saw him coming toward
us. It just happened too quickly.”
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Photos by Don Ward In the seequence of photos, the Unlimited hydroplane U-21 Miss Lakeridge Paving, driven by 26-year-old Brian Perkins of North Road, Wash., attempts to take Turn 1 at the Madison Regatta on Sunday, July 3, after missing the buoys on the first pass. But instead he cuts across the infield and runs over a small Safety-ResCue barge (Photo 1) manned by Michael Brand, Angela Greenwell and Chris Cutshall. Perkins’ race boat spins to a stop on the turn (Photo 2). Then Perkins climbs out of the cockpit and stands on the nose of his boat (Photo 3) while volunteer Safety-Rescue workers rush to the scene to retrieve their fellow crew members from the Ohio River. Cutshall is found unconscious and dangling from the back of the race boat. |
Brand, an engineer by profession and Regatta safety-rescue
veteran of 26 years, was at the controls of the barge. He was knocked
into the water and in addition to a large cut on the head suffered two
broken ribs, cuts to the thigh and heel, a bruised lung and injuries
to his knee and hand.
“I remember the impact. The next thing I know I’m in the water.
I took a pretty good gash to the head, and I must have blacked out for
a minute because the next thing I know I’m in the hospital.”
Greenwell, meanwhile, was standing at the far side of the barge at impact
and was tossed about 30 feet into the water, Brand said. She suffered
several broken bones, including a broken femur. She was in serious but
stable condition initially and later released on July 22.
The crowd of about 35,000 gasped in horror at the sight of the collision,
then watched – almost as if in slow motion – as the bright
green Unlimited hydroplane slowed to a stop at the corner of the race
course, then turned around and drifted aimlessly in the Ohio River as
rescue boats scrambled to get over to the demolished boat.
From the riverbank, it was hard for spectators to see anyone in the
water or what was occurring. Perkins, uninjured, climbed out of his
cockpit and crawled to the front end of the race boat. He stood there
helplessly on the nose of the craft, helmet off, peering into the murky
river water as if searching for any sign of life. Safety-rescue workers,
meanwhile, retrieved Brand and Greenwell from the water. They then found
Cutshall unconscious and entangled in the back of the race boat. His
legs were dangling in the water but his upper torso was on the back
of the boat with his left arm clinging to the upright, according to
Brand and Chris’ father, Stew Cutshall.
“He never hit the water; there was no water in his lungs. He had
taken the full brunt of the impact and he was still hanging on to the
upright back by the turbine exhaust,” said Stew. “He got hit
very hard, but he’s strong.”
Cutshall was taken back to shore aboard the rescue craft and then flown
by helicopter to the University of Louisville Hospital’s Intensive
Care Unit, where he remained until July 16 when he was moved to a regular
room. He suffered severe head trauma, cuts to his head, a crushed right
leg that had to be reconstructed with rods and screws, and fractures
to three vertebrae and his neck, according to his wife. He was moved
to Louisville’s Christopher East Healthcare Center on Aug. 4 to
receive rehabilitation therapy.
But on Sept. 21, he came back to the Madison area when he was moved
to Hanover Health and Rehabilitation Center in nearby Hanover, Ind.
“We hope that by being closer to home, it will be easier on everyone
and more friends and family can go visit him,” Laura said. “The
more contact he has with people he knew, the better it is for his memory
recall.”
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Photo courtesy of Stew Cutshall Chris
Cutshall, 31, |
Once notified of the accident, Laura Cutshall called Nancy
and arranged to meet her in town so they could immediately drive to
Louisville to be with her husband.That set into motion a chain of events
that would result in weeks of waiting and prayers and local fundraisers
and hospital stays for family members.
They waited until 2 a.m. the next morning before the hospital staff
would allow anyone in to see Chris. “He was lying in bed with weights
on his knee, a C-collar around his neck and wearing a back brace,”
Laura recalled. They had rods holding his leg bone in place and screws
to put his leg back together. Other than that, he looked perfectly normal
– no facial scars or damage like I expected to see.”
Learning to cope with the aftermath
Chris and Laura Cutshall have known each other since they were teenagers.
They graduated from Madison Consolidated High School and were together
for several years before marrying in 2001.
Chris earned his carpenter’s license and is employed by Carpenters
Union 631 in Charlestown, Ind. He has worked on jobs at I.K.E.C. power
plant and helped build the new playground at Lydia Middletown Elementary
School. Recently, he had been working on the new Madison-Milton Bridge
just prior to the Madison Regatta.
The couple reside in a rented mobile home on 46 acres located on the
eastern side of Jefferson County past Brooksburg, where they care for
horses, chickens, dogs and cats on property owned by John Fenig.
“We are just plain country folks,” says Laura, 31. “We
are home bodies and like to be at home with our son.”
Chris is an avid amateur photographer and volunteer fireman for the
Milton-Brooksburg Volunteer Fire Dept. near Madison. He likes to play
video games and is a very talented carpenter, say family members.
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Photo
courtesy of Nancy Cutshall Chris
and Laura Cutshall, |
“Even as a kid he was always building things,”
said his mother, Nancy. She says he gets his fascination for firefighting
from his late grandfather, George King, who was a charter member of
Madison Volunteer Fire Dept. No. 6.
Chris took several photographs while working on the Jefferson County
Courthouse fire in May 2009. Many of his photographs are on display
and for sale at two local stores in Madison – All Ways Pottery
and Something Simple.
“He’s a very easy going guy and he has a talent with the camera,”
said Jeremy Douglas, or “J.D.” as he is known to friends.
Douglas, 37, is a truck driver and volunteer fireman for Ryker’s
Ridge Volunteer Fire Dept. who met Cutshall several years ago during
fire-rescue training exercises. Douglas was on a safety-rescue boat
with his wife, Brandy, down near the bridge that day when the accident
occurred. He could only wait and listen to the events unfold over the
two-way radio.
“I was stuck on the boat the rest of the day, so I wasn’t
able to get to him,” Douglas said. But in the weeks and months
since the accident, he has visited his friend in the hospital many times.
And not a day has gone by that he hasn’t called Laura Cutshall
for support.
“He has called me every day to ask about Chris – or if
nothing else, just to talk,” she said.
Asked how Laura is holding up through all the turmoil, he said, “She’s
a strong girl; she’s doing what she’s got to do. The whole
family has been helping her out. She was at the hospital the whole summer,
but when school started, she had to get back to work, so the family
has been taking turns going to the hospital.”
Laura has worked in the lunch room and as a janitor at local schools
and this fall took a new job in the lunch room at Anderson Elementary
School. She and her father-in-law, Stew Cutshall, spent most of the
summer at the hospital. Stew is a Madison native but now lives in Bloomington,
where he works as a financial analyst in the student housing department.
As soon as he learned of the accident, he and his wife, Donna, were
on their way to Louisville that day. He has spent so much time at the
hospital that he only worked at IU four days in July, he said.
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Top
photo courtesy of Michael Brand; The
Madison Regatta custom-made |
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“I pretty much lived at the hospital the month of
July,” said Stew, 49.
Until now, the family has not discussed these events with the media.
The only information has been released through Laura or Nancy Cutshall,
or through an Internet website created by Chris’ stepmother, Donna
Cutshall. The website, www.CaringBridge.org, shows some photos of Chris
in rehab with occasional updates on his progress. But Laura said she
thought it was time to let the public know what is going on and decided
to tell her family’s story to RoundAbout.
“At first, I wanted to keep the media away and to focus on Chris
and my family,” Laura said. “It’s not about the reporters;
it was about Chris and getting him back.”
Laura admits that accepting help from family members – and in many
cases perfect strangers – took some getting used to.
“I have learned a lot about myself,” she said of the experience.
“I have always been the type of person who does things for myself,
so I am not used to asking for help. But this time, I needed help.
“Austin has spent a lot of time with his grandparents and at relatives’
homes and has learned that it won’t just be us three at home any
more. But my family has expanded immensely, primarily because of the
volunteer firemen in the area.”
Both Chris and Laura come from divorced homes and have nine siblings
or step-siblings between them. Family members from all sides have come
to their aid, she said. “It has been a learning experience for
all of us.”
Meantime, the Madison Regatta Committee organized a candlelight vigil
at the riverfront on July 4, the very next night after the accident.
At the Unlimited hydroplane race in Detroit the following weekend, the
Grosse Pointe Yacht Club raised $2,000 for the accident victims, primarily
through the auction of racing collectibles and autographed items.
On July 30, the Madison Regatta organized a large fundraising event
at the Madison Township Fire Dept. that featured several bands, including
guitarist Jimmy Davis. He is the brother of Madison Regatta President
Crystal McHargue. The event attracted a large crowd and raised $13,000
for the accident victims.
On Saturday, Sept. 10, Madison Volunteer Fire Dept. Chief Robert Black
organized a “Boot Drive” collection for the Chris Cutshall
Relief Fund on several street intersections around Madison. Firemen
from six of the eight local volunteer fire departments collected $7,400,
Black said. His mother, Nancy, is dating a fireman and stood at the
intersection of Hwys. 62 and 7 all day wearing a T-shirt that said”
“Chris’ Mom.”
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Photo
courtesy of Nancy Cutshall Chris
Cutshall is moved into Hanover |
“I have felt helpless throughout all of this, but
this was something I could do,” she said. “And it made me
feel good to see all the community support.”
In addition to monetary donations, she said her group collected a ring,
a safety deposit box key and live turtle.
“We let the turtle go,” she said.
Rehab and recovery
“I was fairly blessed. Although I was beaten up, I came out of
it fairly well,” said Brand. He was treated at King’s Daughters’
Hospital and released by 9:30 that same night. But he is still suffering
from pain from his injuries, he said.
The others were not so lucky.
Greenwell spent three weeks in the hospital in Lousville, then went
to her mother’s house to recover and only recently returned home,
Brand said.
Cutshall, meanwhile, has a long road to recovery. But family members
and friends are optimistic because they see many signs of progress in
the weeks since the accident. But no one, including the doctors, know
to what degree he will ever recover because of the brain injury.
“Within the first couple of weeks, he opened his eyes,” Laura
recalled. “The next couple of weeks, he moved his left arm and
head. He still cannot move the right side of his body. The C-collar
is off his neck and he can move the left side of his body.”
He went back to the hospital from Sept. 2-9 because of bleeding on the
brain. But he has improved a lot since returning to the rehab center.
With the help of rehab staff members, he took his first steps in early
September. He walked for the first time on Sept. 14. Other than brain
stimulants, he is on no medication.
“He recognizes me and other family members,” Laura said. “He
can write our names and answer a few questions.”
Doctors have told Laura that it will take up to two years for complete
recovery – “to whatever degree he is going to recover to.”
Stew Cutshall says he was told that the dehydration of being on the
river all day actually helped his son’s recovery because it helped
reduce the swelling of the brain when he first arrived at the hospital.
“They kept him in a coma for a long time at first to help reduce
the swelling,” Stew said. “It’s tough because he can’t
talk, but his eyes tell stories. He hears us and he responds to certain
things that are said to him.”
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Photo
provided Nancy
Cutshall, |
He says his son is tough and will make it back. “It’s
just going to take some time.”
Nancy Cutshall, a social services case manager at Madison’s Salvation
Army, said that during a late September visit with her son, Chris wrote
her name and that he loved her.
“I see signs of progress, but this is not easy for any of us,”
she said.
Meantime, the final report of the accident investigation being conducted
by the Indiana Conservation Office has yet to be released. But a spokesperson
from the office in Versailles, Ind., said the report is nearly complete
and will be released very soon.
Madison Regatta media spokesman Joe Hertz said his committee members
and safety-rescue director Buddy Gaw are not at liberty to discuss the
accident with the media. He said the Regatta has tried to help the victims
by organizing the fundraising events.
“You try to train and prepare for these things but this was such
a freak accident, and you just never know what might happen at big events
like that,” he said.
Meantime, the accident victims' lawyers on Sept. 21 filed two separate
lawsuits against the Madison Regatta Inc., the Go Fast Turn Left LLC
boat team, and the two sanctioning bodies of the race – the H1
Unlimited Hydroplane Series and the American Power Boat Association
– for what they claim as negligence in failing to ensure that the
course was "reasonably safe." The lawsuit filed in Louisville
on behalf of Brand and Greenwell contends that the course was set up
in a manner that did not effectively keep the individuals out of danger.
The federal court case filed in Frankfort, Ky., on behalf of Cutshall
does not list the Madison Regatta Inc. as a defendant but lists the
driver, Perkins, the boat team and sponsor, and the two sanctioning
bodies of the race. The complaint for damages said Cutshall "suffered
serious permanent bodily injuries, suffered physical pain and mental
anguish, incurred and continues to incur medical and hospital expenses
for the treatment of his injuries, lost wages and his earning capacity
has been impaired."
In Cutshall's case alone, medical bills have already topped a $500,000,
his wife said.
"We are not trying to get rich. We just want the money that is
due us to pay these enormous medical bills that are piling up,"
she said.
"And we want Chris to come home."
• You may follow Chris Cutshall's road to recovery online at the Internet website: www.CaringBridge.org. Type in Chris Cutshall's name in the search feature. You may contribute to Cutshall's recovery effort by donating to the Chris Cutshall Relief Fund, River Valley Financial Bank, P.O. Box 1590, Madison, IN 47250. A fund also has been established at MainSource Bank in Madison for all three accident victims. Contri-butions are being accepted at all three bank branches. Or send contributions to the Madison Regatta, P.O. Box 341, Madison, IN 47250.