Crash

When I was nine years old I was in a car crash. My mum was driving and I was in the back with my brothers and the cat. An HGV lorry driver decided to overtake a car on a hill just outside Preston and in doing so hit us head on spinning the car off the bridge and into a field. We were cut out of the car by firemen and then two ambulances, one from Blackpool and one from Preston took my mum in one direction and my brothers and I in the other to different hospitals.

I was unconscious and had a cut face and badly bruised legs, Robert had a fractured skull but remained conscious throughout and Matthew, who was two years old, was catapulted from the middle of the back seat and trapped between the two front seats which saved him from being flung through the windscreen. My mum was very badly injured. As the car was crushed, the engine came forward and broke my mum's right leg in three places including smashing her knee cap. As she shielded her eyes the windscreen glass gouged out most of the flesh from the inside of her right arm down to the bone in places. Her face was also badly cut and glass had sliced a flap of skin off her forehead.

I was out of hospital in a couple of weeks as was Robert and Matthew didn't have to stay at all. My mum however was in hospital for weeks with her leg in traction and when she was finally released she was in a wheelchair for months. All of this meant that as a family we had to leave our home in Oldham and live with grandparents - firstly my dad's parents in Preston then, when my mum was out of hospital, to her parents in Poulton - and I left my primary school for most of the year and went to a countryside school just outside Preston.

My classmates from school in Oldham spent an afternoon writing letters to me which I received in hospital. I've copied some of them below - including grammar and spelling mistakes - which I find quite touching and funny.

14 Manor Park Rise
Greenacres
Oldham
8/1/85

Dear Richard,

I hope you are feeling better. We are missing you because we have nobody to be on at tig-on-line.

Now it is snowing. We are having snowball fights. In our bay we have three broken windows. Lindsey is still the same old funny character, Lisa Doolan is still very stubborn, Natalie is still the same old girl.

From
Mark Travis

Greenacres Primary School
Dunkerly St.
Greenacres,
Oldham
15th January 1985

Dear Richard

I hope that you get well soon and come back to school soon and get well. You are not the only one who is hurt because I am. I have a broken arm. I broke it because David Whiteley fell on it.

From
Paul Mannion

Get Well soon Get Well Soon


Greenacres Primary School
Dunkerley St.,
Greenacres
Oldham

Tues Jan. 15th 1985

Dear Richard

We have been doing about round signs. I hope that you come Back soon. We have been playing in the snow snowball fighting.

By Christian


17 Taurus St,
Greenacres
Oldham
8.1.85

Dear Richard,

I hope you are feeling better. Did you have a nice Christmas.
I have got some nice things for Christmas.
I got a radio with ear phones. I got two my “little” pony’s. I hope you get better soon Richard and Robert and your mum.

From Gillian


29 Watergate Milne Court
Waterhead
Oldham
8.1.85

Dear Richard

I hope that you get well soon.
I thought that you might like to read my poem.
I hope that you get back to school quick.
We have changed over with Mrs Shaw.
We go in the morning and the others go in the afternoon now. Would you like to read my poem now
1) Oh Welephant oh Welephant what have I done,
I’ve started a fire oh I am so dumb
2) all my presents are under the tree, oh Welephant of Welephant whon’t you help me.
3) Never fool with fire and that is your moto easy to learn it’s better than saying fire burn burn burn

From

Anuaska Mercer


Greenacres Primary School
Dunkerley St
Greenacres
Oldham
Wednesday 16th January 1985

Dear Richard

I am sorry to hear about the accident.
Wish you were here to see all the snow we have had. I hope you had a nice Christmas. And I hope yo like the new boy in Mrs Anistworth’s class. It was snowing here on Monday.
Get well soon
From
Susan


Greenacres Primary School
Dunkerley St
Greenacres
Oldham
16th January 1985
Dear Richard

I am sorry about your accident.
Down in Greenacres it is snowing.
We wish you were hear. At school we have started Maths work cards. They are easy. At home my dog Kelly has had Seven pups. Get well soon
From
Racheal


Greenacres Primary School
Dunkerley St
Greenacres
Oldham
15 January 1985

Dear Richard

We have been out Side and been catching number plates and it Was fun. I hope you get better soon. We have been playing with the snow.

From
Lee


Greenacres Primary School
Dunkerley St
Greenacres
Oldham

Wednesday 16th January 1985

Dear Richard

I hope you are soon back at school again because we will all be glad to see you here.
Also when you come back to this school I hope you like the project that we are talking about. I hope you will like the letters that we are writing to you. Are you enjoying the school that you are at now?

From
Joanne


Greenacres Primary School
Dunkerley St
Greenacres
Oldham
Wednesday 16th January 1985

Dear Richard

Paul Mannion has had a fight with Scott. We are doing topic on road safety.
I hope you get better.
The weather is trecherous.
Me and Andrew have been talking about 101 sillys. We have been getting into mischef

From you friend
Craig Pemberton


51 Sharples Hall St
Watersheding
Oldham
8.1.85.

Dear Richard,

I hope that you are feeling better. I am looking forward to seeing you back at school and I hope you have had a merry Christmas. I have had a nice Christmas. But I have stayed in most of the time and played with my cousins calculator and watched television most of the time.

From
Lindsey


Greenacres Primary School
Dunkerley St
Greenacres
Oldham
Tues. 15th Jan 1985

Dear Richard

You can’t play your violin or your recorder because you had a car crash. I Wish you was at school because you are missing all the fun at school but when you get better you will be able to join in our games

Christopher McDonald


12 Locking Gate Rise
Waterhead
Oldham
8.1.85

Dear Richard,

I hope that you are feeling better. Rebecca told me about the accident. I felt sorry for you. It has been snowing and we have been playing in it. I have been falling in the snow. My brother Adam laughed at me. Then we had a snowball fight this morning.
Tonight I am going on my sledge with Adam. I hope you had lots of nice Christmas presents.

Your friend
Natalie
Walton


Greenacres Primary School
Dunkerley St
Greenacres
Oldham
16th January 1985

Dear Richard

I hope you get well soon.
We are doing about road safety at school and we are coming back to verbs. It is snowing very hard today and it is an inside play time today.
There is a new boy in J1 called Wayne.

From
Nigel Sinkis


Greenacres Primary School
Dunkerley St
Greenacres
Oldham
Wed 16th January 1985

Dear Richard,

It’s a pity you can’t have the kile. And you have mist the races at p.e. And are read road safety work. While your reading and sitting down we are busy at work. When you come back I will tell you the answers if your brains gone.

By Adrian


5 Esther st.
Greenacres
Oldham
8/1/85

Dear Richard,

I hope you come back to school soon, and this is a poem which I have written for you to read.

You play with your friends,
And hope you were back,
You sing them a song
All about Nat

I hope that you will get well soon

From
Lisa Doolan