With doctors working arduously to save the right leg of a man pinned by a speeding
motor car in a sludge-filled drain, exactly one month ago, the victim, still
battling to endure the pain and mental agony has a story to tell.Forty-six-year old Niel Richardson, of West Ruimveldt, on November 8 last,

was returning home after purchasing bread at a shop, when disaster struck.
As he was crossing Middle Road La Penitence, he was hit by a speeding Toyota
Spacio motor car, which violently hurled him across the road, landing him in
a mucky drain and pinned him there for sometime.
In the process, his right ear was also severed. Unable to set himself free,
Richardson was forced to remain there with his leg crushed and pinned under the
car, until public-spirited persons intervened and bounced the car off him.
He was rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital (GPH) with his tissues torn,
exposed and covered with silt. Doctors, realising the imminent danger to which
his leg was exposed, wasted no time in admitting him to theatre, but much damage
was already done.
The leg was infested and had become infected with bacteria and other foreign
material while in the water. Within two days, there were signs of it becoming
gangrenous and they were forced to amputate (cut it off) below the knee.
“I was in deep pain, but I remember the haste with which about four of them
(doctors) rushed with me to the theatre, and I really appreciate this,”
he recalled.
For the first few weeks the pain had become almost unbearable and doctors were
forced to administer strong medicine. At some times the leg pained so much he
could not even eat.
Richardson, who said he has learnt from his experience, now has words of advice
for others.
“If ever you are involved in an accident and find yourself in a position where your
tissues become crushed or torn, and remain submerged in dirty or mucky water,
get out as quickly as possible and flush it out with peroxide or Dettol, until
you can reach the nearest health facility for professional care,” he said.
A carpenter/mason by profession, he daily agonises over not being able to get
out of bed, let alone complete the tasks he had set himself to, for the Christmas
holidays.
He anticipated he will be laid up for at least another year, based on what doctors
have said to him.
Meanwhile, the victim said that to date, no Police rank has visited him in hospital
to take a statement on the accident. Relatives said the investigating rank sent
a message, telling the victim that the Police have the driver’s licence and when
he is out of hospital, he could come to the station to follow up the matter.
About three weeks ago, the acting Traffic Chief and traffic ranks, along with
senior Road Safety officials visited the Male Accident and Surgical Wards as
part of Road Safety Month activities. However, on that day, the patient was in
theatre.

By Shirley Thomas