Help Rachael recover after serious Burning Man accident

Our beloved Rachael aka MORE! took quite a tumble on August 31st at Burning Man. In a freak accident, she fell from about 20 feet onto her back, sustaining multiple fractures to her spine and ribs, bruising of internal organs, but fortunately avoiding any head trauma or life-altering injuries. We like to say that both her and my Guardian Angels were working overtime that morning.

After a long stay at Rampart (Burning Man's field/triage hospital), we were transported by ambulance to Reno where they did advanced imaging and admitted her for a few days to assess and monitor her injuries. It was determined that she did not need surgery and that she will make a full recovery with time.

As is all too common with major medical incidents, she is preparing for the onslaught of bills to hit. We're unsure of what to expect, but we know there will be expenses for the hospital stay and ongoing care she'll need to receive as she heals.

Thank you for your support! We are both so grateful to the community for the outpouring love she's received! So many people have asked how they can help and support her and we are truly humbled by all the messages we've gotten. ❤️‍

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Original post-fall post by Rachael on 9/1/24:

I may have left playa in an ambulance this year, but it was still the best burn yet.

Around 6am on Saturday morning, I was out with friends at a huge art installation of a ship that appeared to be sinking into the ground called Naga and the Captainess. Part of the interactive experience was climbing up a ladder into a crow’s nest then sliding down a pole that was at a 60-70 degree angle to the ground.

I watched others do it successfully and followed instructions from the man working at the base who told us to wrap our legs around it first then slide down. I was able to drop down and wrap my legs around the pole but was wearing a backpack and a coat so when I started sliding, I slipped to one side and flipped around to the underside of the pole.

I remember the “oh shit” moment where I lost my grip and started falling. The next thing I remember was waking up on the ground surrounded by medics and unable to move.

I had fallen about 20 feet and landed on my back. The backpack (containing metal cups) somewhat broke my fall and I believe the clip-in hair piece I was wearing actually kept my head from impacting the ground in a way that could have caused serious head trauma.

I was told that I was convulsing immediately after impact and looping my thoughts before returning to consciousness after a few minutes. I remember laying on the ground feeling shocks of pain course through my body and being unable to move as I was loaded into an ambulance.

After spending 16+ hours on a cot in the yellow triage section of Rampart (the makeshift hospital tent at Burning Man), we were finally able to take an ambulance off playa to an actual hospital in Reno.

I was taken directly to the trauma unit where they did a thorough CT scan. I learned that I had fractured my L1-L4 spine on the left wings as well as my 6th rib. I also have contusions on my lung and spleen so they are keeping me for one more night to monitor for internal bleeding.

So far, everything has been trending in a positive direction and I’m expected to heal within the next 6-8 weeks.

I feel so grateful to have a partner who has stayed by my side and advocated for me during some very stressful situations.

I’m also SO grateful for our campmates who not only helped make our burn the best one yet, but jumped right in to take care of everything that needed to be done to strike camp.

I should be released tomorrow with some pain meds and instructions to take it easy so we plan to stay in Reno for another couple days before making the trek home.

That was one of the scariest experiences of my life and I’m so grateful my injuries weren’t more severe. Regardless of how it ended, I’m still calling this burn “the next year that was actually better.”