“They said my face was blue, my eyes were wide open and I was making snoring noises. That sound is a “death rattle” it is a sign that a person is approaching death.” –Luz Pena
Best wishes to ABC7’s News reporter Luz Pena who is recovering after a very serious accident on the slopes of Heavenly Ski Resort in South Lake Tahoe.
The 11-time Emmy award winning bilingual journalist crashed into a tree head-on and was discovered by her husband and brother-in-law lying unconscious on top of a tree well with a badly mangled leg. At the time they didn’t know but her leg break was life threatening and centimeters away from severing a major artery. The pair didn’t have cellphone reception at the time but thankfully were able to hail a passing ski patroller who stabilized her before taking her to the base via rescue toboggan. At the base she was met by an ambulance who then took her to a helicopter and was finally flown to a hospital.
Pena has been off-air for about a month as she convalesces from her injuries but is in good spirits and was ready to tell her story. One Pena’s major takeaway is the importance of wearing a helmet while skiing, something that may well have saved her life.
