A local artist who survived five hours in the frigid waters of the Salish Sea in late October and the rescuers who gave her a second chance at life were both struck with emotion as they met again in Ladysmith on Sunday.
B次元官网网址淭hey were absolutely amazing and so compassionate and it was just such a beautiful meeting - I totally remembered the faces of the two guys that pulled me out of the water,B次元官网网址� said Mya DeRyan, who moved to Ladysmith in late 2016 and is self-taught in the ancient Japanese art form known as Gyotaku, or fish rubbing.
B次元官网网址淭his was an extraordinary circumstance because they were looking for someone who didnB次元官网网址檛 want to be found.B次元官网网址�
The 52-year-old jumped from the third car deck of BC FerriesB次元官网网址� Queen of Cowichan vessel travelling from Horseshoe Bay to Departure Bay on Oct. 30.
DeRyan had been suffering from a terminal illness and all last spring the dark blue curtains of her gallery on Esplanade Avenue beside city hall where drawn closed more often than not.
However, according to doctors that treated her following the rescue for hypothermia and resulting complications, DeRyan had been misdiagnosed with an illness she prefers to keep private.
B次元官网网址淔or as sick as I was, it was not a misdiagnosis. That was clear to anybody who was close to me or around me - the illness was very real,B次元官网网址� she said.
Over the weekend, DeRyan, at her request, met with four members of the West Vancouver RCMSAR who found her drifting with a life ring approximately four nautical miles from where she took the plunge into the ocean.
The large-scale search also involved members of Department of National Defence, Canadian Coast Guard as well as BC Ferries.
On the day of the ordeal, DeRyan remembers being extremely mindful and void of all mental chatter.
B次元官网网址淚 felt like I couldnB次元官网网址檛 have gone another day,B次元官网网址� she said of her condition.
She spent the afternoon in the park at Horseshoe Bay, sipping a coffee and eating onion rings, before boarding the ferry.
On the car deck she left a note sticking out of her purse indicating she was very sick, drank a bottle of Prosecco, and then when she felt like she was out of sight, disrobed, got up onto the railing and jumped.
B次元官网网址淲hen I hit the water it was just an elated feeling of B次元官网网址榝inally.B次元官网网址� I felt so free. I felt so liberated and I felt like I was just on the threshold to relief and the next address, the next place,B次元官网网址� she said.
However, back on the Queen of Cowichan, Christopher Wood saw DeRyan hit the water and instinctively pulled the alarm to let BC Ferries staff know someone had gone overboard.
DeRyan said at no point does she remember the water feeling cold and the sensation that surprised her the most was the wake from the ferry that reminded her of the sparkling wine she drank only moments earlier.
B次元官网网址淚 wanted to be alone in the water. I wanted to be in an emotional and mental state to just peacefully pass and go down with the sun,B次元官网网址� she said.
The large-scale search involving authorities both in the air and on the water included West Vancouver RCMSARB次元官网网址檚 Rob Alexander, Bruce Falkins, Rebecca Hathaway and Ian Grantham, who all met with DeRyan over the weekend.
Director of Operations, Jason van der Valk was also in attendance and said B次元官网网址渋t was a great opportunity to sit down face-to-face with Mya and get a bit more insight into what she saw, what she felt, and vice versa.B次元官网网址�
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 not too often the volunteers get to see again the people weB次元官网网址檝e assisted or helped, let alone find out how theyB次元官网网址檙e doing, so itB次元官网网址檚 good closure for them,B次元官网网址� he said. B次元官网网址淚t definitely was emotional. It was less about the operational B次元官网网址榳hat ifsB次元官网网址橞次元官网网址t was a chance to sit there and listen to Mya and understand how she is doing.B次元官网网址�
Alone in the ocean, DeRyan swam and tread water for the better part of almost five hours altogether, trying to breath calmly and concentrating while the search went on around her.
B次元官网网址淭o have that intense energy of the search going on and all that activityB次元官网网址 didnB次元官网网址檛 want what was going on in the water to be the water I went down in. I needed to wait out the search,B次元官网网址� she said, joking how she sang the Cops theme song Bad Boys as the helicopter circled overhead. B次元官网网址淚 wanted to die on my own terms.B次元官网网址�
Losing concentration as the cold water pained her body to the point of nearly rendering her immobile, DeRyan remembers calling out for anything to grab onto and seeing the life ring originally tossed from the ferry by Wood drifting toward her.
B次元官网网址淚 open my eyes and I see something orange and glowing moving towards me. ItB次元官网网址檚 not just floating on the wave like itB次元官网网址檚 in the current, it almost seemed like it was purposefully coming to me,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淚t floated directly to me. I just picked it up and put it over my head. It just came right to me and then I just balled.B次元官网网址�
Using a series of calculations based off of that original floating ring with an attached beacon as a marker, authorities had mapped a series of quadrants across the search area.
Rescuers eventually found DeRyan fully conscious and clinging to the ring but with a body temperature dangerously in the range of 27 C.
Van der Valk could only describe DeRyanB次元官网网址檚 survival given the frigid conditions that day and her ability to find the energy to stay afloat as B次元官网网址渁n anomaly.B次元官网网址�
The 33 RCMSAR stations, which also includes a Ladysmith detachment, handles upwards of 800 tasks annually, but only a small handful are for personal watercraft, or in this case only an individual.
B次元官网网址淥ne of the members has been volunteering for marine SAR for 40 years and heB次元官网网址檚 not aware of a case like this that heB次元官网网址檚 been on and so it was very unique,B次元官网网址� said van der Valk said.
Following DeRyanB次元官网网址檚 decision to go public last week with her story, many on social media expressed frustration with her putting rescuers own lives on the line.
DeRyan said she understands their point-of-view and that it was never part of her plan to bring attention upon herself.
B次元官网网址淚 felt so guilty about tying up both ferries and delaying everybody and just imagining what they must being going through emotionally, or judgmentally,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檇 left a note that said I had jumped and was very sick not because I was sad, and they were supposed to find it upon arriving in Nanaimo, not after I jumped.B次元官网网址�
Now, she plans to close up her gallery in Ladysmith within the next week and move to Vancouver to be closer to her son to start a new chapter.
B次元官网网址淚 feel like IB次元官网网址檝e made some new friends. TheyB次元官网网址檝e invited me to come visit them at the station,B次元官网网址� she said. B次元官网网址淚t certainly brought me closure and just having an opportunity to just really convey my gratitude.B次元官网网址�
DeRyan said sheB次元官网网址檚 no longer suffering any side effects related the illness but is still coming to grips with just how she beat the odds in more ways than one.
SheB次元官网网址檒l continue pursuing art but feel thereB次元官网网址檚 life beyond the walls of the little gallery in Ladysmith that is adorned with fish rubbings from around the world.
B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 very easy for me to have the reality set in that my body spontaneously healed. Not just the illness but everything,B次元官网网址� she said.B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 going to take me longer to grapple with the water. ThereB次元官网网址檚 so much that happened out there. ThereB次元官网网址檚 so much that IB次元官网网址檓 still putting into perspective. I donB次元官网网址檛 know how to tell that story, to articulate what that was.B次元官网网址�
editor@ladysmithchronicle.com
