West Coast man loses feet, hand in Arctic storm

A West Coast man who survived being stranded in an Arctic whiteout has had to have both feet amputated in an American hospital.

Joseph Gibbons, 39, also known as Jake Speed, from Karamea, initially lost about three quarters of each foot and his right hand to frostbite.

His feet had now been amputated, friend John Fiebig said.

Leaving them would have meant a much slower recovery and possible complications leading to amputation later, Mr Fiebig said.

Mr Gibbons and his friend Daniel Vos, 46, also from Karamea, were caught in a storm on April 15 while working near Summit Camp, the highest point of Greenland's icecap.

Mr Vos had a night in the open, then joined the search for Mr Gibbons, who spent three nights and three days without survival gear in a snow hole as the temperature plummeted to minus 40degC.

His colleagues finally found him and he is now in the University of California Davis burns unit. Mr Fiebig said he was in regular email contact and had talked to Mr Gibbons a couple of times on Skype.

His friend was fitted with a prosthetic right hand two days ago and expected to receive his new feet next week.

His sense of humour was definitely still there.

He said Mr Gibbons and his wife, Kathy Blumm, who also works on the ice, planned to return in September to the Karamea home they had owned for about three years.

They were awesome people, Mr Fiebig said.

"I guarantee if you met Jake you would like him. He has even taken the hospital by storm and he's almost planning his own rehab.

"I wouldn't be surprised if he checks himself out of hospital, he's that sort of person. He's inspirational..

Mr Fieberg said Karamea people were pitching in to welcome the couple home.

Locals had stacked their shed with firewood, were preparing their vegetable garden, building a chicken coup, replacing an old water pump and installing a new hot water cylinder in their home.

Fundraising for the couple was also under way.

- NZPA