Matthew Ashley was ready to go home.

The 13-year-old and his friend, Curtis Jackson, also 13, had spent nearly an hour fishing at the drainage pond near their Purcellville homes on Aug. 3. It was getting close to 7 p.m.

But Jackson – who had switched where he was standing several times to find his “sweet spot” – was settled in on an 8-foot-tall concrete ledge overlooking the pond. He wanted to cast one more line.

“We should probably go home,” Ashley told Jackson. The boys had already caught more than two dozen fish apiece. But, when Jackson persisted, Ashley conceded.

“Catch two more fish,” he said.

There would be no more fish caught that evening.

Jackson lost his balance during their conversation and fell backward from where he stood, dropping 8 feet into the water below. The murky, orange-colored water was shallow – no more than 8 inches deep – but the adolescent had struck the crown of his head on a rock and was lying face-up, unconscious.

Curtis Jackson, 13, fell from the ledge above the pipes and hit his head on a rock in the water Aug. 3. His friend Matthew Ashley saved him from drowning. Times-Mirror Staff Photo/Beverly Denny

Ashley ran down a nearby concrete incline toward the pond, crying out Jackson’s name while calling 9-1-1 on his cell phone.

Moments later, Jackson awoke to the sound of his name.

“Curtis!” Ashley screamed over and over again.

Jackson thought he was paralyzed.

Ashley called out for Jackson to get closer to him. Jackson followed his direction and finally, Ashley grabbed Jackson by his collar and dragged him out of the water.

As Jackson hyperventilated, Ashley tried to give directions to the emergency dispatcher through his tears. The dispatcher was having difficulty locating the boys’ location on A Street in the Hirst Farm neighborhood.

Meanwhile, Jackson had taken his shirt off and Ashley wrapped his head in it.

Jackson called out “Somebody help!” to several bicyclists that happened to be racing by at the time. No one initially responded until one of the bicyclists paused to respond to his repeated calls.

The bicyclist, whose identity is unknown, took off the sweatband on his head and wrapped Jackson’s head in it.

By that time, the emergency response personnel had arrived on scene. A helicopter landed in the parking lot of Blue Ridge Middle School to airlift Jackson to a Fairfax County hospital.

It was then that his mother, Jane Jackson, saw him for the first time since he struck his head. She had been at a counseling class in Leesburg at the time, but had made it to her son’s side in 15 minutes.

When she arrived, one of the medical responders said Curtis had something to give her. It was a $20 bill he had saved in his shoe.

“He smiled and I said, ‘He’s OK,’” she said.

Jackson lost three pints of blood, and gained a concussion, a 5-inch gash and seven staples in his head.

A week later, he’s already talking about returning to fishing. He’s a 10-year fishing veteran and he wants to grow up to be a professional fisherman.

But he won’t be returning to the drainage pond to practice.

He said he learned from the experience: “Don’t go anywhere without permission or without an adult.”

Ashley added, “And don’t stand on concrete ledges.”

“And you can count on a friend,” Jackson added.

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