A 20-year-old woman who suffered serious injuries in a rollercoaster crash at Alton Tower has had her leg amputated.
Vicky Balch underwent seven rounds of surgery to retain her leg, according to her lawyers, who said on Friday that her “bravery has not been rewarded” and that her right leg had been amputated below the knee.
The student from Leyland, Lancashire, was among five people seriously injured when the Smiler ride crashed into an empty carriage on 2 June. The collision left more than a dozen people trapped 7.6m (25ft) above the ground.
Another of the most seriously hurt, Leah Washington, 17, had her left leg amputated above the knee days after the incident.
Balch had been sitting alongside Washington with Joe Pugh, who damaged both knees, and Daniel Thorpe, who suffered a broken leg and a punctured lung. Chandaben Chauhan, 49, of Wednesbury, West Midlands, was also injured.
Balch, who had a four-and-a-half-hour wait for rescue, previously told the BBC: “It felt like slow motion. We banged into the car in front. I felt the bars go into my knees; we moved backwards and the car went into us again.
“I passed out. I was awoken by Dan shouting my name. Everyone was screaming and I was in excruciating pain. I looked down and I could see blood all over. The bars were in my right knee.
“The only thought that was going through my mind for the hours and hours that we were stuck was that we were going to die. If I was going to survive I would never walk again, that was certain.”
Balch has previously said that she “just wanted to die” as she waited hours to be rescued from the ride. Emergency services eventually rescued 16 people trapped on the rollercoaster at a 45-degree angle.
Paul Paxton, head of personal injury at Stewarts Law, said Balch had endured seven rounds of surgery at University hospital in Coventry before the decision was taken to amputate her right leg below the knee.
In a statement issued at the request of her family, he said: “Vicky has had a long and incredibly painful fight to retain her leg. Regrettably, her bravery has not been rewarded. The step was taken to remove the leg following seven bouts of surgery. Further surgery will be required in the immediate future, which may involve a more acute amputation.
“The family continue to be grateful for all well-wishers, though they do seek privacy during this difficult period of rehabilitation. In particular, Vicky and the family would like to thank the staff at the University Hospital for their care and support.”
Merlin Entertainments, the Staffordshire park’s corporate owner, has accepted full responsibility for the crash and said it would provide compensation for all 16 people injured.
The £18m Smiler ride, described as “the world’s first 14-looping rollercoaster” on its official website, opened in May 2013. It had been closed twice before the incident because of technical issues.
