A dad who spent six weeks in a coma woke up to be told his legs needed to be amputated.
Carl Bargh from Kirkby became ill with a chest infection in 2009 which shut down all of his vital organs. The dad-of-four said his time in hospital was a blur and spent six weeks in a coma on life support.
Carl who spent 24 years in Merseyside Police, mainly with Special Branch, came round from the coma and septicaemia had set in. He was told his legs would have to be amputated if he wanted to survive.
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The 56-year-old told the ECHO: "It was a case of lose your legs or lose your life so it was not much of a decision. It was all a blur from when the chest infection started I lost gallons of fluid and my kidneys shut down first.
"When I came round my toes and fingertips were all black and a disease called osteomyelitis had set in. I saw in the police, so you develop a coping mechanism and there is nothing I can change so I just try to make a joke out of it."
Carl said he always tries to find the positive in his situation and since losing his legs has "never had a down day". However, he said there are certain things that he misses.
Carl said: "I can't dance anymore but then again I could not dance in the first place. But there are lots of things I can't do, I used to ride motorbikes and I can't play football.
"But I just get on with it the world does not owe me a favour and you just have to make the best of what you've got. I have never had a down day over losing my legs and I have never felt sad about it."
On July 23, Carl will be facing his greatest fear - heights - by abseiling down the Anglican Cathedral. He said that he can barely go one step up a ladder without getting scared but wants to wants to push his boundaries.
Carl, 56, said: "It is something I need to do and I have a fear of heights what better way to push the limits. I just thought I would try something nobody would expect a double amputee to do."
Carl is raising money for Claire House Children's Hospice along with his employer Anglia Research, if you would like to donate to the page click here.
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