Road crash victim says thanks to ambulance crew who saved his life

Chris Sole was cycling back to his home in Horsham after visiting friends when the accident happened in September 2011. He suffered multiple life-threatening injuries and was given emergency roadside treatment by Kent, Surrey and Sussex air ambulance medics.

Doctor Magnus Nelson and critical care paramedic David Wright put Chris into an induced coma, at the scene, and Chris was then rushed to St George’s Hospital in London for further specialist treatment.

And now Chris - who has since made a good recovery - has been reunited with Dr Nelson and paramedic David Wright and presented them with a donation of £2,500 for the air ambulance service – the cost of one air ambulance mission.

The reunion took place at the charity’s base at Redhill Aerodrome with Chris’s family who handed over a cheque to the charity.

Chris, who now works as a volunteer for the air ambulance service, said: “Each mission costs in the region of £2,500, so I wanted to donate this amount as my way of saying thank you to them for saving my life.”

Although Chris had met David during a previous visit to the base, it was the first time he had met Dr Nelson since his accident.

Dr Nelson said: “It was great to see Chris after such a long time and it’s incredibly touching that he wants to donate this fantastic amount of money.

“It was an absolute pleasure to meet him and we are very grateful not only for this donation, but for all that Chris does as a volunteer.”