ST. GEORGE — Washington County Search and Rescue teams were kept busy Saturday afternoon in two incidents that required medical assistance for the patients.
Overlooking Warner Valley from the Hurricane Cliffs, Washington County, Utah, photo undated | Photo by Julie Applegate, St. George News
The first call came in about 4:30 p.m. when emergency crews responded an injured man nearby the water tanks outside of Washington City in the large recreational area of Washington County known as Warner Valley.
Washington County Sheriff’s Deputy Brandon Lacagnina arrived on scene to find two people helping a man with injuries. He told the officer he had accidentally shot himself in the leg with a handgun.
Lacagnina said that handgun misfired as he was trying to holster the weapon. The bullet went into the man’s right leg through the top of the calf, then exited at the bottom of his right foot in the heel, upon initial inspection.
“The people aiding him had already applied a tourniquet, dressed the wounds and bandaged the bleeding,” Lacagnina said. “Medical got there and took over. He should do very well and heal rather soon.”
No citations were issued and the patient was transported to the St. George Regional Hospital.
Volunteers clean up trash on public land in Warner Valley, Utah, April 9, 2016 | Photo courtesy of Bureau of Land Management, St. George News
About five minutes later, Lacagnina said personnel responded to a utility-terrain vehicle rollover incident a little further into the same valley.
Four teenagers — two male and two female — were recreating in the popular off-road area of Southern Utah when the machine rolled. The driver’s arm slipped out of the window and was injured, he added.
“Sounds like he was trying to show off and he pushed the vehicle too hard,” Lacagnina said. “Pretty good injuries to the right forearm, below the elbow.”
The driver was treated on scene and then also taken by ambulance to St. George Regional Hospital.
This report is based on statements by emergency personnel and may not include the full scope of their findings.
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