A man survived after being impaled through the chest by a wooden post which moved his heart.
Richard Stephenson, 23, was a front seat passenger in his friend’s car when it careered off the road and crashed into a fence.
One of its posts flew into the vehicle at high speed and pierced Richard’s chest.
Surgeons said his heart had been moved an eighth of a inch to the side by the sheer force of the impact.
The missile broke four ribs and damaged his right lung, bowel and kidney.
Great North Air Ambulance Service flew him from the crash scene in Workington, Cumbria to Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle. He still has bits of wood and bone “floating around” inside his body following the crash on October 18, 2018.
Richard, of Workington, said: “I would not be here were it not for the surgeons, doctors and air ambulance paramedics. It really is remarkable that I survived.
“When I woke up after three days I could not feel my legs. I panicked at first, they told me that was because I had been sedated.
“I regained movement, then walked. I have no memory of the accident. It stops at the day before, then three days afterwards.
“The surgeon told me my heart had moved across three millimetres to the side but it kept beating.”
Back home after five weeks and three days in hospital, the car valet worker added: “I am so lucky to be here. I appreciate everything about life now. It gives you a different perspective. The little things that bothered me before, I realise now they are just not that important.”
Dr John Ferris, a rapid response doctor who was one of the first on the scene, heard Richard moaning as he approached.
“I began to feel reassured that he must have escaped serious injury,” he said.
“But as I came around the side of the car it became quickly apparent that this was going to be that once-in-a-career job where your skills are stretched to the maximum and beyond.
“On removal from the car, Richard developed respiratory failure and began to show all the signs of a patient who was about to die.
“Between us we rapidly anaesthetised him, and operated on his chest to stabilise him, preparing him for flight. I remember watching the helicopter fly away from scene thinking that it would be a miracle if he were to survive.”
The pole was cut on the chest side at the hospital, with Richard given ketamine as a painkiller. Consultant in emergency medicine Dr Jonathan ‘Doogie’ Howes described the surgery on the damaged organs.
He said: “Richard had an op to remove the wood, but ended up losing part of his right lung. He then went into intensive care.”
His mum Michelle, 56, who works in catering, and stepdad Ian Wood, 65,
remained at his bedside.
- The story is on Emergency Helicopter Medics tomorrow at 9pm on More4.
