Forest Falls Girl Who Fell 30-35 Feet is Recovering, Mother Asks for Prayers

Update 3:31 p.m. Genny Shepler's condition Monday afternoon was listed as serious, with stable vital signs, a Loma Linda University Medical Center spokeswoman said.

Posted 12:51 p.m. A 9-year-old Forest Falls girl who fell 30 to 35 feet near a steep cataract in Mill Creek Canyon a week ago is recovering from a skull fracture that put her into a coma, according to her family.

Her mother, DeAnne Shepler, asks for prayers for 9-year-old Genny and her three siblings, who were with Genny when she fell and helped save her from drowning.

Genny was out hiking with a group on Monday July 30 in the Upper Falls area of Big Falls, near the end of Valley of the Falls Drive, according to the Sheriff's Department.

When Genny fell, her sister Hanna Shepler, 13, also fell, sustaining minor injuries, DeAnne Shepler said in a message to Redlands-Loma Linda Patch on Sunday.

"Even with falling 25 feet, she still was able to get Genny's head out of the water, so she would not drown," Shepler said.

Genny's brothers, Tristan Besnia, 13, and Gage Besnia, 12, were also there, and they helped save Genny by rolling her over when she began to vomit, "even though adults were yelling at them not to touch her," Shepler said.

"The docs say she would most likely would not have survived without their quick and precise actions," Shepler said.

A call for help reached sheriff's dispatch at 1:44 p.m. that day, a sheriff's spokeswoman said.

Forest Service and County Fire personnel hiked up to Genny and placed her in a rescue litter, and a sheriff's helicopter crew hoisted her to the airship for the flight to a local hospital.

Genny was initially considered comatose and has been placed on sedation while she recovers at Loma Linda University Medical Center. She is on a respirator and fighting a lung infection.

The Sheplers have set up a CaringBridge site with photos of Genny and updates on her condition. CaringBridge is supported by donations. For more information visit www.caringbridge.org.

is one of the most popular destinations in Mill Creek Canyon. A weather-beaten sign at a trailhead below the falls warns visitors of the hazards:

"Wet rocks below the waterfalls and unstable cliffs have resulted in falls that have claimed many lives."

Forest Falls is about 20 miles northeast of downtown Redlands, in a box canyon that provides access to the mountainous San Gorgonio Wilderness.

Follow Redlands-Loma Linda Patch on Twitter and Facebook, and sign up for the free daily newsletter here.