A newlywed husband who fell into a dormant volcano while on his honeymoon has praised his wife for his 鈥渕iraculous鈥 rescue after she carried him almost five kilometres to help.
Clay and Acaimie Chastain were hiking Mount Liamuiga on the Caribbean island of St. Kitts when disaster struck on July 18.
The couple from Indiana believe the rope Clay was using to descend into the volcano crater snapped and he fell between 40 to 70 feet.
鈥淚 just listened really, really closely and I heard what sounded like Clay saying 鈥榟elp,鈥 just really, really faintly,鈥 Acaimie told Florida station WSVN.
鈥淎t that point in time I started freaking out and started praying right away because I had no idea what was going on.鈥
Unable to call 911 because of a lack of signal, Acaimie made the steep descent to find her stricken husband.
鈥淚 was shocked to see that he didn鈥檛 have any broken bones鈥 knew he had a concussion because when you have a concussion you vomit and you don鈥檛 know what鈥檚 going on,鈥 Acaimie said.
鈥淏ut I didn鈥檛 know if he had any internal injuries and I was completely freaked out because I knew we were entirely alone.
鈥淚 looked at him and said 鈥榳e鈥檙e going to have to climb out of here. So I had him holding onto the rope and I was telling him where exactly to put his feet and I pushed from his butt to get back out of the crater.鈥欌
Acaime, who weighs just over 100 pounds, hiked for hours screaming for help, while her husband slumped at her side, struggled to remain conscious.
鈥淚 said 鈥榳e鈥檙e going to have to trust God and we鈥檙e going to have to try really hard to stay awake and I know you don鈥檛 want to climb but we have to do this and you have to listen to me,鈥 Acaimie said.
鈥淚 was shocked I was able to keep it together. The whole time I鈥檓 encouraging him and coaching him and saying 鈥榯ry and ask some questions.鈥欌
The couple continued the steep descent despite regular stops as Clay vomited blood. Acaime was finally able to get a signal on her cell about a kilometre and a half down the mountain and an ambulance was dispatched.
鈥淚f I was watching back now it feels like a terrible disaster movie,鈥 she said.
鈥淚 was like 鈥榤an, where are the cameras, I hope this is not real life.鈥 I was just so happy that he was conscious, at least able to move even if he didn鈥檛 know what was going on.
鈥淗e was able to still lean on me and make his descent down because if he hadn鈥檛 I鈥檓 not strong enough to physically carry a 165 pound man through that rugged terrain that far.鈥
The newlyweds were flown from St. Kitts to Broward Health Medical Center in Florida by air ambulance.
Clay still suffers headaches and has lost hearing in his right ear.
He is expected to spend more time recovering in hospital where he will require a drain of his skull because cerebral spinal fluid is leaking into his nose and throat.
鈥淚t鈥檚 astounding, the amount she was able to get through, because not only did she keep me going down the mountain when I couldn鈥檛 even walk, I could stand up and I could move my feet to walk, but I had no sense of direction and no balance,鈥 he said.
鈥淭he fact I had to lean on her most of the way down and she was able to keep going and support me through that is nothing short of a miracle.鈥
Family and friends of the pair helped raise more than US$35,000 through a GoFundMe page to pay for the air ambulance from St. Kitts and to cover their medical expenses.
