Editor’s Note: Three generations of the Krogh family have owned mills in Idaho. They currently own the mill at Tamarack, another in Kooskia, and a third in Meridian. When The Record Reporter contacted the Tamarack Mill about the accident, Mark Krogh said, “No comment.” When The Record Reporter called OSHA in Boise to ask how many accidents had happened at the Tamarack Mill, we were told that information was not available to the public.
A post on an online fundraising site has identified the critically injured worker as Council resident David Briscoe.
Friday, March 7th at 10:39 a.m., Meadows Valley Rural Fire Department received a dispatched call to respond to a medical emergency at the Tamarack Mill. As 97% volunteer department, MVRFD began the response in the District’s ambulance with the 3 full-time staff, Chief Doug Buys, and EMTs Brown and Smith. Three volunteer firefighters joined the call meeting at the Tamarack Mill in support.
Upon arriving, the team was led to the heart of the mill where an industrial accident had taken place involving one employee. The employee, while working in his role in maintenance of the equipment at the Mill was critically injured.
Given the critical nature of the individual’s injuries, the team quickly determined that the patient would have to be moved so that proper and necessary care could be provided. Chief Doug Buys and Firefighter Devin Buys were required to vertically lift the patient over 20 feet using a rope, so that he could thereafter be carried across multiple catwalks and down flights of stairs to the awaiting ambulance.
Once extracted from the area where the accident took place, the MVEMS team worked in the ambulance to further assess the individual’s injuries and provide stabilizing emergency medical care and to save the patient. An air rescue transport had been called to meet the team at the Mill, however, due to the critical nature of the condition of the injured patient Chief Buys diverted the helicopter to meet them at St. Luke’s Hospital in McCall.
The St. Luke’s ER team took over the care of the patient until he was stable enough to be transported via LifeFlight to a hospital in Boise.
