THIS is part two of a series about the remarkable Mary Gibson from Talarm, who was trapped under a tractor wheel in an accident on her property in December 2022. To read part one, pick up a copy of last week’s paper or visit nambuccavalley.newsofthearea.com.au.
THE serious dilemma Mary had found herself in continued as she was pinned under the tractor for a second night.
“I have never been one to panic, it must be in my genes, coming from a family who had lived through the depression, but I knew my sister would be concerned,” Mary said of her situation.
By the second morning Mary’s sister Penny had indeed raised the alarm via Macksville police.
A search was initiated and Mary was eventually located, with emergency services springing into action to recover her.
“The first thing I heard – I must have been unconscious before that – was my neighbour being asked to move the horses so the helicopter could land,” Mary told NOTA.
“Then I remember apologising for the fuss and interrupting their lunch.
“There were people standing over me in white coats, I thought I was in a movie!”
The emergency services, including the Talarm Rural Fire Service and the Westpac Rescue Helicopter Service paramedics, were quick to act in both stabilising Mary’s medical condition and her extraction from under the tractor with the use of airbags and lifting equipment.
With all this swiftly happening around her, Mary recalls the confusion of the moment.
“I was thinking all these people were there for a party in my ‘folly’ down the hill, but I’d not been invited. I do like a party,” she said.
Mary was airlifted to Newcastle Hospital, eventually requiring a leg amputation and months of rehabilitation.
By Jen HETHERINGTON
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