Ann Curry Rescued By Boy Scouts Troop After Hurting Ankle During Hike

Ann Curry had a mishap while hiking and the Boy Scouts came to the rescue. The kids saved her after she broke her ankle at Harriman State Park in New York.

The members of troop 368 out of Berkeley Heights, New Jersey put the skills they train for to good use when they came to the rescue of the 57-year-old journalist, who had been enjoying a hike on Friday, April 5, as chronicled on the blog Scoutingmagazine.org

“Last month a group of New Jersey Boy Scouts helped rescue the NBC journalist Ann Curry after she had broken her ankle while hiking.”

When they saw the woman by the side of the trial they didn’t know it was Ann Curry. Scouter Rick Jurgens says:

“We were hiking along, and we came to a trail intersection and a lady was sitting on the ground with her one leg out. We didn’t think anything of it, but one of the guys asked if everything is OK. She said, ‘No, not really. I think I broke my ankle.’ She told us to keep going, but the guys refused.”

According to Jurgens — who is a professional firefighter and EMT — his troop didn’t need any prompting and sprang into action to help make a splint for Curry:

“They splinted it up perfectly,” Jurgens said. “Just like in the pictures.”

Jurgens proudly said:

“We work on these requirements, and here’s an opportunity where it was a true test of all those First Class, Second Class first-aid requirements. They got to use it and use it for real. And they did an outstanding job.”

Once Ann Curry’s leg was splinted, the scouts needed to safely take her down the steep mountain and once again, the boys scouts knew what to do:

“The guys on their own, with no direction from me, start running into the woods. And she didn’t know what was going on, and I didn’t know what was going on either.”

Next, the members of Troop 368 had to build a makeshift stretcher. For that they used two strong sticks tied to a tarp, a skill they learned in first-aid class. One of the troop members laid on it to try it out and it worked.

Jurgens says Ann Curry was in a good mood throughout the ordeal asking them questions about their hike while her ankle swelled. She slid into the stretcher and the group proceeded down the mountain.

Ann Curry’s husband and son walked ahead to get their car. Once she was safely seated in the front seat, her husband thanked Jurgens saying:

“You guys are the best, I don’t know what I would do without you guys.”

Ann Curry was also grateful for the troop’s help and called Jurgens to thank him and his troop:

“She said, ‘Hi, is this Rick? This is Ann Curry, the lady you rescued on Bear Mountain.’ She was really great and really appreciative. She said she underestimated the Boy Scouts of America. She was just mesmerized that a bunch of 14-, 15- and 16-year-olds came together and got her down the mountain.

Curry also wrote a letter for all the troop members and took to Twitter to express her appreciation:

If you break a leg on on a mountain, I hope Boy Scout Troop 368 finds you. Boy am I glad they found me. http://t.co/AzTWlFzNcz

— Ann Curry (@AnnCurry) May 9, 2014

When the rescue took place, the members of Troop 368 didn’t know they were coming to the aid of Ann Curry, international correspondent, who has been to Iraq, Afghanistan, and other dangerous places covering news for NBC. They were informed of the fact by one of the park rangers who was answering the distress call from Curry’s husband.

[Image via Everett Collection / Shutterstock.com]