East Aurora native survives serious accident in Utah

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) -- A Western New York native now living in Utah is grateful to be alive after a frightening accident.

Jacob Schmitt is an outdoorsman. The East Aurora native moved to Utah about 3 1/2 years ago. On July 20, he was out with his dog Buddy while scouting deer on the Uinta Mountains.

"We were having a great day, finding a lot of animals," Schmitt said. "And I found one I really liked that I was trying to get closer to, and on trails that I've been on a million times."

Schmitt said that around 8:30 p.m., he stopped his side-by-side UTV on a trail he thought was a little unsafe.

"I decided to try to back up to turn around, to go a different way, and it's basically right at the point that I stopped and decided that at zero miles an hour, my machine started to tilt, and I realized it was going to go down a sizable cliff to the passenger side," Schmitt said. "So from there on, it kind of ensued -- quite a nightmare."

Schmitt said he rolled down the cliff a couple of times before he was ejected about 20 feet. He said the side-by-side rolled about 100 feet down the cliff.

Schmitt was able to make it to the side-by-side to find a small roll of duct tape, using the tape, a belt, and a stick to improvise a splint for his broken leg.

Schmitt said no one was around until his 6-year-old dog Buddy arrived.

"He just walks up just like normal, like it was an everyday thing," Schmitt said. "Like, hey, what's going on? He was without a scratch."

The two would spend 11 hours together as Schmitt crawled to his truck.

"Thank God he has a little collar light and a little LED light," Schmitt said. "So that was all I had. I had no flashlights at the end of it, couldn't find anything even to remotely light myself. So I used a little collar like he had, and he guided me out like some sort of angel."

Schmitt was able to make it to his truck and to a diner where an employee called for help. He spent days in the hospital. Schmitt said he suffered a broken leg, two fractured ankles, a couple of broken ribs, bruising, and scratches.

"Every gadget you could have, I had it and I bought it, and none of it was there when you get half whipped down a mountain," Schmitt said. "So if you don't know how to get out with nothing, then you're going to probably still be out there. So, prepare to do everything with nothing, and self-rescue."

A GoFundMe is raising money for his medical expenses.