Almost two months after a truck crash in Myanmar left three Durangoans injured, all are on the mend. The most seriously injured, a Myanmar citizen, is also making strides.
The crash occurred Nov. 9 in the southeast Asian country when the brakes of a truck the Durango-based Shanta Foundation workers were in gave out while going down a hill.
The crash left Shanta co-founder Trisha Karpfen with four cracked lumbar vertebrae; her husband, Mike Karpfen, escaped without serious injury. Durango resident Sandy Bielenberg suffered a compression fracture of an L1 vertebra and a broken rib; Durangoan Tom Cheatham needed only a few stitches for a head wound.
Director of the organization, Nge Nge Khaingzar Oo, a Myanmar resident, suffered a cervical fracture, which left her with limited mobility in her arms and paralysis in her right hand.
Mike Karpfen, who returned from Myanmar on Thursday, said in a phone interview Monday his wife is now nearly fully recovered, even taking a recent snowshoeing trip. Bielenberg still wears a back brace, he said, but through physical therapy is becoming more active and can walk on smooth paths.
Nge Nge has also made progress in her recovery, returning to her home in Nyaung Shwe, Myanmar, to continue her therapy. She has regained mobility in her arms and is now able to write with her right hand.
During Nge Nge’s treatment, Mike Karpfen remained with her in Myanmar to manage logistics and assist with care.
Nge Nge was also aided by Durango physical therapist Maggie Galland, who volunteered to go to Myanmar and help Nge in her recovery, so she could leave the hospital and return home.
“It was helpful for me because I got to go home and helpful for Nge Nge to have additional very professional physical therapy,” Mike Karpfen said.
The process also has been aided through organizational donations on the Shanta Foundation website, which went to help fund Nge Nge’s $51,000 medical treatment. So far, Mike Karpfen said, they have raised $44,000.
“It was really great for the community to pull together for someone they’ve only met once,” he said, referring to when Nge Nge visited Durango for a fundraiser in September.
Though Nge Nge’s recovery has taken slightly longer than it was first thought, Mike Karpfen said he is hoping she will begin to resume some work with the foundation when he returns to Myanmar in March.
“She was lucky in a lot of ways. It was very near to being permanent,” he said. “I think in the next few months she’s going to have a full recovery.”
Two project members with Shanta have stepped in to handle her work until she returns. When Mike Karpfen returns in March, he will be working to help the organization expand its efforts into three additional villages.
The Durango-based Shanta foundation, created by Mike and Tricia Karpfen in 2006, strives to build sustainable and thriving communities in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma. Numerous Durango volunteers have traveled to Myanmar to help the foundation’s efforts.
Sarah Ford is a junior majoring in journalism at the University of Denver. herald@durangoherald.com.
