A dad-of-two is home for Christmas after waking from a coma following a pool accident and asking for a pizza and a pint of Stella.
Chris Watkins, from Pontypool in South Wales, feared he would never walk again after breaking his neck when he dived into a pool at Aparthotel Columbus in Playa de las Americas.
The 43-year old groundsman was on a lad's trip in Tenerife when the accident happened on September 6.
Friends initially thought he was joking when he appeared to be injured but when he screamed "I've broken my neck, I can't feel anything, help me" he was rushed to a hospital in pain.
Chris had to undergo an urgent operation and medics placed him in an induced coma before generous donors funded a £28,000 air ambulance to fly him back to Wales on October 6.
The dad-of-two battled coronavirus earlier this month and has made such an impressive recovery he has taken his first steps - stunning medics who feared he would end up in a wheelchair.
Doctors have hailed his recovery as a “miracle” while his sister Nadia Hopkins described him as “The Bionic Man”.
Nadia told The Sun he had made an 'amazing' recovery from the freak accident.
Describing when he woke from his coma, she said: “When he first spoke he asked us for a pint of Stella and a pizza."
Chris was granted his wish of a pizza - twice.
Christian Preece, 43, the best friend of Chris witnessed the accident and said his “heart sank” when he realised his pal was seriously.
He said: "He's a bit of a joker but I knew from his voice that he was telling the truth.”
Nadia, 34, said when Chris tested positive for coronavirus he was transferred to another hospital as doctors feared he would deteriorate and get worse because of his injuries.
“We were petrified when he caught Covid.
He had come so far after suffering such a terrible injury - it was genuinely life-threatening," she said.
“But he’s such a fighter, everyone is so proud of him.”
Nadia said Chris is such a fighter and 'everyone is so proud of him'.
She added that her brother 'loved life, and was always 100mph' but despite his accident he is still 'constantly smiling'.
Chris, who has lost three stone since the accident, will now spend two weeks at home before returning to undergo a rehabilitation programme at the Rockwood Hospital in Cardiff.
