Man Falls Off Silo Trying To Retrieve Dove

On the opening afternoon of dove season, dedicated dove hunter Bobby Macris got himself into some trouble while trying to do the right thing.

Bobby, who is from Alpharetta, was hunting in Franklin County with a friend’s son, Constantine Gavalas. It was about 6 p.m., and they were hunting around an old chicken house.

“There were some doves; it was an average day,” said Bobby.

Bobby hit dove, but it landed on top of the old chicken house. He decided he would make an effort to retrieve the bird. Bobby took a piece of PVC pipe and tried to scrape the dove off the top, but he was unsuccessful. Beside the chicken house there was an old silo used for grain, so Bobby decided to climb up the silo to see about getting a better angle to push the dove off the chicken house roof.

Just as Bobby got up on the silo and was in a position where he was fixing to get the dove, he put his hand on a red wasp nest. Shocked by the sudden encounter with the wasps, Bobby fell off the silo and onto an old fence post.

“When I fell on it, I couldn’t move,” said Bobby. “On top of that, I looked down, and I was on an ant nest.”

The ants began to crawl on Bobby and bite him.

“It dawned on me that I had left my cell phone in the truck. I didn’t want to carry it in my pocket because I carry my shotgun shells and my keys in there. I thought to myself, ‘Uh oh. I’m in trouble now,’” Bobby said.

Constantine, who was on the other side of the chicken house, thought Bobby was joking when he started yelling for help, but he soon realized, it wasn’t a joke.

Bobby thought he would be able to get up with Constantine’s help, but the pain was too excruciating, and Bobby thought he might pass out.

“I couldn’t move my right leg at all. I tried to move it a fraction of an inch, but the pain was so excruciating,” said Bobby.

Thankfully, Constantine had his phone, and they decided it was best to call 911. It was beginning to get dark, and the only way the EMTs were able to locate Bobby was by GPS.

“They cut my pants off of me to see if my hip was fractured or if a bone was sticking out,” said Bobby.  “Here I am laying basically naked in an ant bed, and two guys I have never met are cutting my clothes off, and I was thinking this is hysterical.”

Because of the angle Bobby was laying, they were unable to put anything under him. They took a sheet and made a sling, and the two EMTs and Constantine were able to put Bobby on the gurney.

Soon after, Bobby was taken to Athens General, where a pin was inserted into his right femur the next morning.

“I’m gonna be laid up like this for several of weeks doing therapy and so forth,” Bobby said. “I feel better, and I’m recovering. I’m already on my little walker, getting around the basement. And of course, my biggest fear is this is gonna screw up my deer hunting this year. My friends have assured me that even if they have to drag me, they will do something to help me get out and see if I can get a deer this year.”

Bobby added that there were lots of lessons to be learned, and the dove is still on the roof of the chicken house. He said he mentioned to his wife that he needed to go back to get it, and his wife jokingly threatened to divorce him.