http://kdka.com/local/local_story_111140029.html
Butler Teen Seriously Injured in Pole Vaulting Accident
Doctors at Children's Hospital have put Knoch freshman Ryan Adler in a medically induced coma to keep swelling down on his brain
Apr 21, 2005 1:37 pm US/Eastern
Pittsburgh (KDKA) A ninth-grade boy from Butler County is in a coma after a frightening pole vaulting accident during a high school track meet this week.
Knoch Track Coach Wes Brahler says freshman Ryan Adler was attempting a nine-foot jump at the meet at North Allegheny High School Monday night, when he stalled, released the pole -- and plummeted to the ground below.
"Even though he was attempting a nine foot jump, theoretically, he was getting up ten to eleven feet in the air -- so coming down with that amount of force is pretty serious...
"It looked like he hit his shoulder first and then his neck and head -- and immediately he was unconscious once he hit that surface." -- Wes Brahler, Knoch Track Coach
Brahler says it was the most serious accident he's ever seen. "This is the first time I've ever had a life or death situation happen," explains the coach.
Coach Brahler says Adler's teammates are praying for his complete recovery. "One of the young boys, actually a tenth grader, came to me and said, 'Can we have a prayer once we get on the bus?' and I said that would be perfectly fine," Brahler explains.
"They're just a very sincere bunch of boys," he adds, "very compassionate."
Though Adler's mother and sister were at the meet when the accident happened, his father and brother were thousands of miles away on a missionary trip to Thailand, where they've been helping tsunami victims.
In the meantime, the National Pole Vault Committee is now investigating the accident.