Almost everyone knows the feeling: You've slipped and slid the whole day, trying to be careful and go slow. And then, when you least expect it, what was vertical becomes horizontal.
You fall.
If you're lucky, you'll only suffer a moment of humility and the icy chill of snow down your collar, but for many others, the fall can be dangerous.
Penny Sparacino, the nurse manager of the student infirmary, said she's taken care of at least eight to 10 falls in the past few days. "Some of them were alcohol-related, some weren't," she said.
Sparacino ticks off an impressive list of injuries, from broken jaws, noses and clavicles to what she called "one of the most beautiful butt bruises we've had in 20 years."
In the Emergency Department of Duke Hospital, clinical nurse Patty Shepherd is also seeing a range of injuries. "We've had a lot of wrist fractures and hip fractures," she said. "[People are] trying to get out and are just not paying attention."
Sparacino added that people should weigh several factors when considering whether to seek help. "If it's a head injury and you feel in any way out of sorts..., you need to be checked." If any other body part is injured and is incapable of its full range of motion after the fall, it should also be checked, she said. "If its normal functioning at all is affected, you should get checked."
Trinity junior Elli Venakides said she's fallen once and seen at least two other people wipe out on the ice. "I'm going a lot slower. I feel like a three-year-old," she said. "And I haven't got any boots-just tennis shoes-so I'm all over the place."
Shannon Dooley, a Trinity sophomore, said she is wearing shoes with greater traction and taking paths that have been cleared. "[I heard that] in Edens, someone fell and broke their ankle and then someone cracked their jaw," Dooley said. But she added that she's satisfied with the ice and snow removal so far. "They're doing the best they can considering there's a sheet of ice over everything."
To prevent further spills from occurring, Sparacino advised people to take it slower and to stay close to the banisters on stairways. "I've found it's better to walk where there's snow than on the sidewalk where you think they've cleared it," she said. But she added that even with precautions, some falls are inevitable. "We just have falls, and there's not a lot you can do."
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