Valencia 14-year-old Zane Wach suffered a fall on June 10 on Mount Whitney and is in a Las Vegas hospital fighting for his life, according to Heather Riggen, a friend of the family.
Riggen, who’s also the family’s neighbor, created a GoFundMe page for Wach as a result of people asking for a tangible way to help.
“(W)hile their family is so fortunate to have good health care,” she wrote on the page, “there are many other expenses which they will incur on this long journey towards rehabilitation … During this uncertain time, we would like to help ease the burden of their travel costs, such as gas expenses to and from California to Las Vegas, lodging and meals.”
During a telephone interview on Tuesday, Riggen spoke about how Wach had been very excited to climb Mount Whitney. He and his dad, Ryan Wach, had long planned for it, trained for it and couldn’t stop talking about it. Father and son made the climb and got to the top.
It was on the way down, Riggen said, that Wach suffered heat exhaustion, grew disoriented and fell.
Wach’s dad posted on the GoFundMe page that his son, because of the heat exhaustion, was “delirious and hallucinating.”
“(B)efore I could grab him,” Wach’s dad wrote, “(he) wandered off a ledge and fell about 150 feet. Because of the location, search and rescue wasn’t able to get to him for about six hours but got down to him and held him until they did. He was airlifted off the mountain to the ER in Lone Pine and then airlifted again to this hospital (Children’s Hospital in Las Vegas).”
According to Riggen, Wach was in critical condition but stable as of Tuesday. He’s surrounded by family who traveled from California to be with him.
Wach’s father added that his son has been unconscious since his fall, but breathing on his own with good vital functions.
“He has a large skull fracture with some bleeding and brain swelling,” he wrote in his GoFundMe post. “He also broke part of his pelvis, and a finger that we’re sure of. He had a few cuts on his head, face and hand that needed stitches. His biggest issue is the severe head trauma.”
According to Riggen, Wach is a Hart High School swim team member and junior coach of the Old Orchard 2 Sharks Swim Team, adding that he’s a beloved member of the community and people have really come out to be there for him and the family.
Riggen spoke about how when Wach’s Old Orchard 2 Sharks Swim Team found out what happened, they immediately began a campaign in which they wrote “Swimming for Zane” on their backs in marker, and they swam in his name. Even other teams, Wach said, were swimming for him.
“Zane is a really, really great kid,” Riggen said. “He’s super athletic, he’s super kind. He’s just so responsible. He volunteers, he does a lot with his church, he does a lot with the swim team. He’s a junior coach. A lot of the kids look up to him. He’s a role model, a strong kid and a fighter, so, we look forward to having him back.”
Riggen said that if people are unable to make a financial contribution, there are still other ways to help, like sharing Wach’s campaign, writing letters and cards, or even sending videos through the GoFundMe page.
“We believe in the power of community to lift each other up,” wrote Riggen on the page, “and we thank you for your prayers and support. Together we are stronger. Team Zane all the way! We believe in you, buddy; continue to fight.”
To view the GoFundMe page, go to https://bit.ly/43Qtisd.
