M3 Lightwater crash: Good Samaritan who stopped to help suffers 'life-changing injuries' when SECOND car smashes into wreckage - Mirror Online Ok heres a question, how would you react to the incident above? If you read the dit below that's what happened to a mate of mine, would you be as upbeat looking at the stump of a right leg? They say that the military have a strange sense of humour, we'll after 22 years in the Marines I must say that Lee's attitude sums up how a bit of training can change the way you see things. Lees doing OK at the moment his left leg is looking like a scaffolding course project but he's still upbeat and getting loads of shit for his Facebook pics and dress sense. Balls of steel. I was driving up the M3 about midnight on a stormy Sunday night, on my way back to work after Xmas leave. I was in the far left lane (slow lane) when I drove past a car that had obviously just had a bit of a prang. It was pointing at the central reservation straddling the middle and fast lanes with its hazard lights on. So I pulled over into the hard shoulder to make sure everyone was ok ,and more importantly, no one was still in the car. As I got out there was a fellow on the phone with the same idea as me. He said he was calling the emergency services and his mate was with the people from the motor. I went over to them (there was about 4 of them all Eastern European) and ensured there was nobody left in the car. I said to the fellow who was helping them out that he should stay with them, if there was any change in any if them, to call me. I would go forward with the torch on my phone I would try and warn any drivers heading towards the incident. I took 2 or 3 steps then there was a huge bang as another car drove into the Eastern Europeans car at 70+ MPH. The cars engine and gear box smashed into me ad threw me about 40m onto the grassy verge. Everyone panicked and ran up the verge and I noticed that my left leg was pointing straight away from me at the knee. I shouted medic then rolled backwards down the grassy verge. When I came to a stop at the bottom of the verge on the hard shoulder, I noticed that my right foot was hanging onto my leg by a small flesh and that I was pissing blood everywhere, I shouted for someone to come and help me and that I needed a torneque. None of the Eastern Europeans moved, gen! They could see that I was fucked. The lad who was there helping ran down to me then started to flap. A few more vehicles started to stop and a Rastafarian bloke and his daughter came over to me and I told him I needed a torneque. He took of his belt and tried to stop the blood to no avail. At this point I thought I was on my way out. I the got his daughter to stand on my groin, cutting off the femoral artery, put another torneque from my belt and just waited for the ambulance to turn up. I had a flat tyre before all that, that I had to change in the honking weather. And I remember thinking 'well this journey can't get any worse'. What I learnt from this experience: 1-keep a Rastafarian's daughter in your med kit. 2-Royal Marines are hoofin and are there for you when the chips are down 3-if I was that way inclined, ketamine would be my drug of choice
Good drills that man. Glad he is keeping things in perspective. Got a spare Rastafarian's daughters? I've got a couple of CAT tourniquets and some celox but a MK1 RAFD could be just what is missing from my med pouch
Holy shit Well done that man. I guess in our meandering imaginings, we all anticipate we'd react in that same calm methodical way. I wonder what the reality would be? Somewhat different I expect. Hope I never have to find out.
Suffering a horrific injury to a limb sends you into a world of hurt, uncertainty, doubt and shock. Its not nice. In fact its like almost dying but you know you'll pull through unless blood is pulsating at a rapid rate.. Thats scary. If you have the head to think, you can help yourselflike above. But yeah, Id stop, i do think i would have the stomach to help someone like that. I feel sorry for the guy in the article, he'll have a lot of anger towards the guy who caused it. That can be as hard to live with. I hope he makes as good as recovery as can be. Tough is an understatment, he's on a different level there.
do you mean the victim or the helpers Drinky? I would be 'ok' as a helper but my first aid is limited, I don't carry any kit with me and I had no knowledge of the femoral artery lifesaver until I read above.
I ment as the victim, to be able to direct his helpers (well those that were prepared to help) and to be aware that if it failed he was going to bleed out pretty soon must have been bloody Scarey? I was pretty well trained up as a troop level first Aider but I'm not sure that I'd be as cool headed as Lee, who know maybe the desire to stay on this planet would have focused my efforts?
Through work I'm trained to Ambulance technician level. This guy is only alive because of his medic skills and the fact that he was concious enough to get others to help him. With major blood loss he had a very short time to get that squared away before he bled out and lost conciousness. Good skills. I'm hoping that he makes the best recovery he can with what are obviously life changing injuries.
Thanks for posting that. It was very informative and helpful. I hope Lee recovers. I tell thee, our troops do not get rewarded enough for their jobs or skills.
Been following your posts on FB Drinky. I'm lost for words really - 'awesome' doesn't even begin to cover it.
Kinda imagine him, lying on the bank taking a photo on his iPhone and posting it on his Facebook and tagging it 'LOL'. I'm pretty sure I'd have passed out/panicked etc. His training saved his life. It does make you ask yourself the question seriously. We should do a whip round and buy him a pair of Ducati trainers.
Incredible! He deserves all the praise and help he can get. Please pass on my best wishes for a speedy recovery.
I work in A&E so yeah I'd stop and help. I wish they issued us with free kits to keep in the boot for situations like that. A doctor isn't much good with no equipment.
I keep a med kit in my car containing 2 cat tourniquets, a few field dressings, an ashermans chest seal and some celox. I have been told that if I stop and help at a crash and apply a tourniquet to save a life, and that individual loses their limb as a result, I will get sued. I decided I would rather have the person alive and able to sue, than dead and live with the knowledge that I could have kept them alive. Out here the trauma units are so experienced that if you are alive when you get on the helicopter then there is a very very very high chance that you will survive, regardless of your injuries. The first responders, in the first few minutes after an incident are the people that are saving lives, the young privates and corporals. And thats with very little med training.
Here's a flipside for you. On the same stretch of M3 as on the link, about 25 years ago, a car crashed and burst into flames. My two mates were first on the scene. They dragged the badly injured driver from the car and carried him up the bank, but to no avail, he died from his injuries. About a year later one of my mates got arrested - we found out from the front of every national newspaper why... While Dave was trying to resuscitate the driver at that accident, Princey was rifling through his pockets stealing his wallet and chequebook and jewellery. He got caught when he tried to cash a slightly charred cheque. So much for samaritans. Needless to say he wasn't a friend any more.
Fig, that reminds me of an incident about 30 years ago. We were in a boozer when a fight broke out, one guy smashed a glass ashtray on the edge of a table and literally scalped the other. The town hard man was in the pub at the time and intervened by knocking out the glasser, he then went on to stop the bleeding etc etc with the help of some strangers, however during this time on of the other helpers managed to nick Barney's watch off his bloody wrist.
I would not have had any idea and would probably have panicked but I hope I would have been able to follow his instructions Training is vital and so is keeping a cool head Will you wish him all the best from me please Drinky
