A biker left in intensive care following a crash two weeks ago did not let his injuries get in the way of proposing to his girlfriend.
Nathan Clark, 28, has been left seriously disabled following the crash, but didn't let that stop his future plans with girlfriend Sarah Plant.
As he lay in intensive care, with a punctured lung, fractured his leg, a broken back, a severely damaged spinal cord and unable to speak, he proposed to the love of his life after getting the seal of approval from Sarah's father.
Sarah accepted and has since told family members that the couple will still go ahead with their wedding, even though Nathan's injuries mean he will be in a wheelchair for life.
Nathan was airlifted to hospital after the single-vehicle accident in Torquay on Sunday November 10.
Police say Nathan was driving at no more than 25 mph when the accident happened at just after 5pm in Ellacombe Church Road.
The experienced motorcyclist had just left his girlfriend's family home a few hundred yards away and the cause of the accident is a mystery.
A GoFundMe page set up by Sarah's brother Louis says: "On Sunday the 10th of November 2019, Nathan Clark aged 28 years old was tragically involved in a motorcycle accident.
"Travelling at only 20miles an hour, Nathan freakily came off his motorcycle during a 30 second journey from his girlfriends parents house, the journey was only a hundred yards.
"Unresponsive at the scene with multiple life threatening injuries, Nathan was immediately airlifted to Derriford's neurological centre of excellence.
"It was very soon understood after 12 hours of intensive surgery and 15 blood transfusions that Nathan had sustained injuries that would destroy his life forever, at the moment he is not able to use his body from the neck down.
"His other injuries included, a punctured lung, fractured his leg, a broken back, lost some of his teeth and severly damaged his spinal cord. The future is going to be a long hard road ahead."
Nathan, a plumber from Plymouth, is a son to Rose and Steve, a twin brother to Jason, a step dad to Kyron and partner Sarah, next year the plan was to have IVF in the hope to extend his existing family.
Louis said: "Experts predict his recovery to be an ongoing battle. Like most normal families just the hope that Nathan is pain free and cared for is the little comfort we hold."
A GoFundMe fundraising page has been set up to help Nathan and Sarah.
Nathan may be in intensive care for another three months at least.
Sarah's parents Darral and Lyn Plant say they are planning to sell their own home to buy a plot of land and build a wheelchair-friendly home for the newly-weds.
Darral, 55, said: "My daughter text me and asked me to go to the intensive care unit because Nathan wanted to ask me for my daughter's hand in marriage.
"He can't speak because of the ventilator tubes in his throat and he cannot move so I had to pick up his arm to shake his hand to give him my permission.
"They were already been talking about getting married before the crash but my daughter cannot have children without IVF and they were waiting until after she had been through the treatment before he was going to formally ask me for her hand in marriage.
"It was heartbreaking seeing him like that. He wanted to shake my hand. Obviously I said 'Yes' and I've had to put my hand in his with my daughter crying her eyes out."
Darral retold how on the day of the accident Nathan had just left their house in Highbury Road, Ellacombe, when people came running to tell them about the crash.
"It is such a terrible tragedy for this young couple who had everything to look forward to and now it's all come to an abrupt halt.
"I am a builder and I have had my life - our house is just bricks and mortar. We will sell it and buy a plot of land and build them a house."
"Everything will need to be voice-activated and wheelchair-friendly."
Sarah's brother Louis Plant started the GoFundMe page which quickly raised £2,000 towards a £10,000 goal.
"Nathan worked as a plumber and Sarah has taken time off from her job as a manager at Sports Direct to be with him since the accident - they are already struggling financially and we need to help them," Darral said.
Officers from the Roads Policing Team are appealing for any witnesses to the incident to come forward, quoting log 554 of 10 November 2019.
