Anna Parson: Student who broke nearly EVERY BONE after 39ft Yosemite fall hit with $1.2M bill
MARIPOSA, CALIFORNIA: On Monday, August 1, Anna Parson, a 21-year-old college student, fell 39ft while rock climbing in the infamous Snake Dike route on Half Dome peak in California's Yosemite National Park. The fall caused Parson to break almost all bones in her body. Now, she has been hit with a $1.2M hospital bill after amputating her left foot.
Parson was climbing on Runout Slab of the park when she slipped and rolled down a steep slope. She ended up hitting a ledge on the way down. Jessica Ennor, her sister, said Parson broke her neck, spine, pelvis, ribs, wrist, feet, and toes, and suffered from internal injuries, including a punctured lung.
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Speaking to NZME, Ennor said, "The only things that weren't broken were her arms, her thigh bones and her head, which is amazing. It was a hard decision to take her foot off, but it's the best way for her to get back to doing those things that she loves." Being a passionate surfer and mountain biker, it was Parson's decision to amputate the limb. It will give her much more freedom of movement than keeping the limb with restrictions. "She's a very fun-loving, family-orientated, outgoing, hardworking and studious person, passionate about environmental issues," Ennor added.
"[Our family] was all trying to do research, help her weigh the options. It was a big, tough decision. But eventually, Anna just made the call... She didn't care about the amputation, she just wanted to get back to surfing, climbing, and doing the things she loves. That's just the kind of person she is" the college student's brother Ben said.
Parson is a third-year marine ecology student who recently won a scholarship to spend time studying at the Bamfield Marine Sciences Centre in British Columbia, Canada. She flew to the US to do some climbing. On the day of the horrific accident, she made a warmup climb at the 100m Swan Gully as a kicker to tackle the 762m Snake Dike the following day. The climb involves being attached to various bolts on the rock face, and Parson, who had gone on ahead, missed a bolt. However, she realized the same later and tried to climb down to reach the bolt. This led her foot to slip from the surface and she fell before Jack Evans, one of her friends caught her. "The helmet she was wearing was completely demolished, It was extremely lucky that she had it on. Doctors reported she had no sign of head trauma," Evans said to Climbing Magazine.
Ennor has set up a Givealittle page to cover her prothesis and treatment, "Money is something we don't like to stress about but Anna's medical bills exceed $1 million. Her travel insurance only covers a part of the costs of her surgeries and hospital care so we need to fundraise for the rest!" stated the campaign.