Golfer seriously injured after falling from bridge

A 70-year-old Glenwood man who was seriously injured when he fell more than 20 feet off a bridge at the Glenwood Golf Course Thursday afternoon is making a slow but encouraging recovery.

Terry Jones is expected to spend up to three weeks in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) at the University of Nebraska Medical Center (Nebraska Medicine) in Omaha for treatment of multiple injuries, including a fractured eye socket, 13 ribs, sternum, manubrium, wrist, hip and knee cap, two punctured lungs, bruised kidney, compressed heart, dislocated ankle, extensive swelling and multiple lacerations and bruises.

“We’re not out of the woods, yet, but he’s definitely doing a whole lot better,” Jake Jones said of his father’s recovery during an interview Monday morning. “It was a bad fall. He’s pretty much broken from his eyebrows down.

“Thursday night, the trauma doctor came out and told us there was a slim chance he’d make it through the night.”

Terry sustained his injuries when he was ejected from the passenger seat of a golf cart while passing over a narrow bridge near the No. 4 tee box during a tournament.

“My brother (Jeff) was driving the cart. He went to go over one of the bridges and a board or something caught one of the tires. It jolted them and dad went through a railing and fell down about 20 feet,” Jake said. “My brother tried to grab my dad, but couldn’t stop him from falling.”

Jeff immediately ran to the end of the bridge and down the steep embankment to the aid of their father, who had landed in a bed of broken concrete, shallow water and mud. Jeff rolled his dad over, lifted him out of the water and held him until Glenwood Rescue personnel arrived.

A “rope rescue” effort was needed to lift Terry to higher ground. Jake said his dad is 6-foot-3 inches and weighs between 240-250 pounds. Glenwood Rescue received assistance at the scene of the mishap from several golfers who were also taking part in the tournament.

Terry was transported to the hospital by medical helicopter. Jeff, who injured his back while rushing down the embankment to the aid of his father, was also tended to at the scene and transported to Jennie Edmundson Hospital in Council Bluffs. He was treated at the hospital and released.

“He (Jeff) hurt his back pretty good, Jake said. “He’s having a hard time with it.”

Jake was not at the golf course when his father was injured, but immediately made his way to the hospital when notified. Jake said the immediate concerns when his father reached the trauma center at Nebraska Medicine was his inability to breath on his own because of the collapsed lungs and the impact and pressure of the fall had taken on his heart.

“They can fix everything else, but if your heart’s not beating and you’re not breathing, it doesn’t matter,” Jake said.

Jake said his father has been heavily sedated since Thursday, but he’s continuing to show signs of improvement, moving his limbs, responding with his eyes and breathing on his own for the first time Monday without use of a ventilator. He’ll be transferred to the Madonna Rehabilitation Hospital in Omaha in the coming weeks after he’s discharged from UNMC.

Jake, a volunteer firefighter himself in Silver City, expressed his family’s appreciation to Glenwood Fire and Rescue, Oak Township Fire, Lifenet Medical personnel and others at the golf course who assisted with Thursday’s rescue and to the medical professionals at UNMC who are providing around-the-clock care for his father.

“The care he’s been getting has been excellent, from Glenwood Rescue to Lifenet and the staff at the hospital,” he said.

Jake said his family has also received overwhelming support from residents of the Glenwood/ Mills County community and members of The Connection Church.

Terry Jones and his family own and operate several businesses in Mills County, including Turd Toters sanitation service, Beer City and ATV’s and More.

The Opinion-Tribune

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