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Photographer injured in ski accident Andy Atkinson, surrounded by family, clings to life at RVMC after losing control on ice and crashing into a rock Saturday morning By MELISSA MARTIN Mail Tribune The brother of state Sen. Jason Atkinson and son of Oregon Republican Party Chairman Perry Atkinson remained in a coma Monday following a Saturday ski accident in "the Bowl" on Mount Ashland. Medford resident Andy Atkinson, a 27-year-old photographer, remained in serious condition in the intensive care unit at Rogue Valley Medical Center with a major skull fracture and brain swelling, but no spinal injuries or broken legs or arms. His coma was partly injury-induced and partly drug-induced. "Thousands of people have been praying," said Perry Atkinson of Medford, who in addition to leading the Oregon GOP party is founder of KDOV Radio, the region's largest Christian radio station. "Andy has been put on a 3,000-member prayer chain in Texas." It was snowing heavily Saturday morning when Atkinson and his friend, Jeff Anderson, a substitute teacher in Brookings, were skiing on Mount Ashland's most difficult and advanced run. The bowl is made up of steep, narrow chutes situated near the National Weather Service's ball-like radar on top of the mountain. "Andy made a turn uphill, then he made a turn downhill," Perry Atkinson said Monday from the ICU waiting room. "The snow went from powder to ice, he lost control and hit a rock." Anderson was about 50 yards below Atkinson when the accident happened and had a difficult time scrambling up the cliff to reach his friend. When he got there he packed snow around Atkinson's head, reducing swelling. "He did the right thing," Perry Atkinson said. "Those first couple of hours after the accident are so critical." Ashland Fire and Rescue received the call from Mount Ashland at 11:26 a.m. and arrived before the ski patrol brought Atkinson down the mountain, said Greg Case, division chief. Atkinson would have been taken to the hospital by helicopter but the snowfall was too heavy for a safe landing, said Mark Gibson, manager of the Ashland company that owns the Mercy Flights helicopter. "We fly in a lot of adverse conditions, patrolling power lines for the power company and other settings so when it's at a point that we're not going to fly, you know weather conditions are pretty bad," Gibson said. Ashland Fire and Rescue made a dozen trips up to Mount Ashland in the past month to treat a variety of injuries, from pulled muscles to broken bones, Case said. "There's a lot of steep terrain on that mountain, especially in the bowl," Case said. "A lot of accidents are caused by people skiing out of control and exceeding their ability. More people are wearing helmets now." It's unknown whether Atkinson was wearing a helmet Saturday. But a former co-worker described Atkinson as an expert skier who knew every twist and turn on Mount Ashland. "Andy skied that mountain every day he could possibly ski it since he was a little kid," said Steve Johnson, a former Mail Tribune photo editor who now owns his own photography business. "He knew it as well as anybody. " After Northwest Cable News gave the wrong name in a weekend television report, Jason Atkinson, the Senate majority whip, issued a press release about the accident. "We are also fortunate - friends of our family cared for Andy every step of the way," wrote Jason Atkinson. "This includes the ski patrol, the paramedics and the attending physician at Rogue Valley Medical Center." The family has kept vigil in the critical care waiting room since the accident, including Andy Atkinson's wife, Emily, and their 7-month-old son, Rogue, as well as Perry Atkinson and his wife, Peggy, and Jason Atkinson and his wife, Stephanie. They had about 200 visitors and received nearly as many telephone calls to the radio station or the senator's Salem office. "There's one verse I've been clinging to through this whole time, Psalm 118:17, 'I shall not die but live and declare the works of the Lord,' " Perry Atkinson said. "I'm praying this will be Andy's testimony." Reach reporter Melissa Martin at 776-4497, or e-mail [email protected] Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.