A dad of three from Four Oaks, Birmingham, is thanking his lucky stars that he lived to see the birth of his third child, after a horrific accident which saw him impaled on a ladder.
Whilst carrying out a spot of DIY at home, Simon Matthews slipped and fell off his set of ladders- which resulted in two severe punctures to his chest.
The punctures were caused by the ladder’s supporting bracket- which pierced through his skin with alarming ease.
Ambulance crew, fire crew and an air ambulance attended the scene- where Simon had to be cut free from the ladder and airlifted to Selly Oak Hospital.
Simon, who spent just one night in hospital following the incident, is still thankful that his injuries weren’t worse and said:
“I know I was lucky. The metal went straight through the muscle, but it was inches away from being fatal.
“The fire crew were great, they had to cut me free of the ladder before I was taken to hospital.
“In a situation like that you just want to know what is happening and they were so reassuring and told me what I wanted to know, they were just brilliant.
“Near to where I was being treated in the hospital were British soldiers who had been injured in Afghanistan.
“To see those young soldiers was an extremely humbling experience.”
Following his harrowing experience, Simon has vowed to hold fundraising events through his business- with proceeds going to the Midlands Air Ambulance Service, who played such a vital role in saving his life.
