B.C. teen who helped save grandfather after hunting trip accident given Good Samaritan award
A Vancouver Island teenager who called for help when his grandfather was injured in an all-terrain vehicle rollover has been given a Good Samaritan Award from B.C. Emergency Health Services (BCEHS).
Carter Burkard, who was 13 at the time, was out hunting in the Lake Cowichan area of Vancouver Island with his grandfather John Burkard on Nov. 3, 2022.
Snow had begun to fall, and they made a wrong turn, sliding over an embankment.
While Carter jumped safely off the all-terrain vehicle, his grandfather was pinned underneath and suffered serious injuries.
Carter said he panicked at first, but then remembered their GPS device.
The pair were travelling with a Garmin GPS device that can be used for communication in the backcountry. He used it to send an SOS message that went to Garmin’s emergency centre based in Texas.
“I can’t really remember. It just kind of all happened,” said Carter Burkard at an event in Victoria to honour his actions.
“I don’t know. It’s just instincts. You do what you gotta do. And then it all worked out.”
Staff at the Texas call centre contacted a nearby emergency dispatch centre.
Featured VideoThirteen-year-old Carter Burkard was honoured with the B.C. Emergency Health Services’s Good Samaritan Award after his heroic efforts contributed to saving his grandfather’s life in Nov. 2022. The pair were hunting near Lake Cowichan when their all-train vehicle went over an embankment, pinning his grandfather and leaving him with significant traumatic injuries.
Vanessa Baker, an emergency medical call-taker at a BCEHS dispatch operations centre in Kamloops, got the call.
“Carter was an absolute rock star,” said Baker, who nominated him for the Good Samaritan Award.
She said she was able to text Carter through the device, get information on his grandfather’s condition, and relay instructions.
Carter even used surveyor’s tape to mark a space where the air ambulance could land.
“Carter never stopped communicating with Vanessa and helping me,” said his proud grandfather.
After cutting his grandfather loose from the all-terrain vehicle, Carson carried him up to the road and cleared some space so he could lie comfortably. He was then flown to Victoria General Hospital for treatment.
John Burkard suffered a broken back and bone damage to his face, which resulted in a lost eye. He’s had multiple surgeries since the incident.
At the event to honour Carter, his grandfather also thanked the the dispatchers, paramedics, police, helicopter pilots, and medical staff who helped save his life.
But his biggest thanks were for his grandson.
“You’re an amazing guy and I love you very much,” said John Burkard. “Looking forward to many future trips. Safe ones, I hope.”
The BCEHS says the Burkard’s story highlights the importance of using satellite-based communication devices while in the backcountry.
It says in an emergency, you should activate the SOS, provide a clear and brief description of your situation, get a clear view of the sky, and await instructions.
If you accidentally send an SOS, it’s important to communicate that to the emergency centre.
John Burkard says his family uses the devices regularly to communicate while in remote areas — both to keep in touch but also to get comfortable so they’re ready to use them in the event of an emergency.
The BCEHS oversees B.C.’s ambulance services. It gives the award to people who have “provided unselfish and humanitarian assistance during a medical emergency.”
