A wounded warrior and School of Advanced Military Studies student got a reminder of the importance of motorcycle safety and the Combat Lifesaver Course last month.
Maj. Joseph Claburn, a recent graduate of the Intermediate Level Education course, was traveling on his motorcycle June 28 in Douglas County, Kan., when he came across another cyclists’ accident.
Two riders, a man and woman, had been riding with their helmets on when the motorcycle crashed. Claburn said their helmets came off during the accident.
Claburn and another driver who stopped were able to use their medical skills until a local medical team arrived. The other driver happened to be an emergency medical technician with another community, Claburn said, and they made the decision to split up medical duties. Claburn began to assess the man, whose injuries appeared to be less severe.
“I was helping not only a fellow motorcycle rider, but the fact that I took the Combat Lifesaver Course, which is an Army course, and though I hadn’t practiced it in awhile, it came to me instinctively,” he said.
Claburn checked the man’s breathing and pulse. He did a “skin look,” to see if there were injuries and it looked as though the man had broken both his arms. When he touched the man’s side, he complained of chest pain. Claburn tried to monitor for possible lung punctures. While talking to the man to reassure him and calm him down, Claburn cut off the man’s shirt and used it to cover up the wounds.
“He had a cellphone on him, but because his arms were broken, he couldn’t use his hands, so I pulled his phone out of his pocket and called his son right at the accident site,” Claburn said.
It was about 15 minutes before the local ambulance showed up, Claburn said. The woman had to be taken to the hospital via helicopter. The man was stable enough to ride in the ambulance.
“I just seemed to have been at the right place at the right time and seemed to have the right training to make a difference on the ground, and for that I have to thank all my medics who taught me,” he said.
Claburn has had experience using his combat lifesaver training before. With four deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, he’s seen injuries much more severe.
“In comparison to being an infantry guy who, unfortunately, has had to evac some of my own men, the injuries I would consider weren’t that bad, but they were still pretty significant,” he said.
Claburn himself was injured in 2008 while working with German Special Forces Command. His parachute failed, and Claburn fell 120 feet. He injured his spinal cord, several bones in his foot and was diagnosed with partial paraplegia. Claburn spent six months in Walter Reed Army Medical Center, progressing from a wheelchair to being able to walk.
“Originally, they weren’t sure if I was ever going to get up and be an active adult again,” he said.
Motorcycling is one of Claburn’s hobbies. He’s been riding for 10 years and has taken several safety courses. The accident he came across reminded him of the importance of using safety precautions.
“It reemphasized the fact that despite my injuries that I had, you know, I’m able to do something I love and that’s motorcycle ride,” he said. “But with the love of motorcycle riding also comes significant risk and a little bit of danger in motorcycle riding. And when you’re on a motorcycle and you witness something like that, it’s kind of a sobering experience.”
While talking to the local emergency responders and police to fill out reports after the couple had been taken to the hospital, Claburn noticed the license plate on the man’s motorcycle read, “Kansas veteran.”
“And that made me feel even more like I had done something significant, to help out a fellow veteran,” he said.
The Garrison Safety Office offers motorcycle safety courses for beginning and experienced riders. Call 684-1723 for more information.
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A wounded warrior and School of Advanced Military Studies student got a reminder of the importance of motorcycle safety and the Combat Lifesaver Course last month.
Maj. Joseph Claburn, a recent graduate of the Intermediate Level Education course, was traveling on his motorcycle June 28 in Douglas County, Kan., when he came across another cyclists’ accident.
Two riders, a man and woman, had been riding with their helmets on when the motorcycle crashed. Claburn said their helmets came off during the accident.
Claburn and another driver who stopped were able to use their medical skills until a local medical team arrived. The other driver happened to be an emergency medical technician with another community, Claburn said, and they made the decision to split up medical duties. Claburn began to assess the man, whose injuries appeared to be less severe.
“I was helping not only a fellow motorcycle rider, but the fact that I took the Combat Lifesaver Course, which is an Army course, and though I hadn’t practiced it in awhile, it came to me instinctively,” he said.
Claburn checked the man’s breathing and pulse. He did a “skin look,” to see if there were injuries and it looked as though the man had broken both his arms. When he touched the man’s side, he complained of chest pain. Claburn tried to monitor for possible lung punctures. While talking to the man to reassure him and calm him down, Claburn cut off the man’s shirt and used it to cover up the wounds.
“He had a cellphone on him, but because his arms were broken, he couldn’t use his hands, so I pulled his phone out of his pocket and called his son right at the accident site,” Claburn said.
It was about 15 minutes before the local ambulance showed up, Claburn said. The woman had to be taken to the hospital via helicopter. The man was stable enough to ride in the ambulance.
“I just seemed to have been at the right place at the right time and seemed to have the right training to make a difference on the ground, and for that I have to thank all my medics who taught me,” he said.
Claburn has had experience using his combat lifesaver training before. With four deployments to Iraq and Afghanistan, he’s seen injuries much more severe.
“In comparison to being an infantry guy who, unfortunately, has had to evac some of my own men, the injuries I would consider weren’t that bad, but they were still pretty significant,” he said.
Claburn himself was injured in 2008 while working with German Special Forces Command. His parachute failed, and Claburn fell 120 feet. He injured his spinal cord, several bones in his foot and was diagnosed with partial paraplegia. Claburn spent six months in Walter Reed Army Medical Center, progressing from a wheelchair to being able to walk.
“Originally, they weren’t sure if I was ever going to get up and be an active adult again,” he said.
Motorcycling is one of Claburn’s hobbies. He’s been riding for 10 years and has taken several safety courses. The accident he came across reminded him of the importance of using safety precautions.
“It reemphasized the fact that despite my injuries that I had, you know, I’m able to do something I love and that’s motorcycle ride,” he said. “But with the love of motorcycle riding also comes significant risk and a little bit of danger in motorcycle riding. And when you’re on a motorcycle and you witness something like that, it’s kind of a sobering experience.”
While talking to the local emergency responders and police to fill out reports after the couple had been taken to the hospital, Claburn noticed the license plate on the man’s motorcycle read, “Kansas veteran.”
“And that made me feel even more like I had done something significant, to help out a fellow veteran,” he said.
The Garrison Safety Office offers motorcycle safety courses for beginning and experienced riders. Call 684-1723 for more information.
