Boyfriend recalls terror of crash at Alton Towers
THE boyfriend of a teenager who had a leg amputated after a rollercoaster crash has recalled the “sickening bang” he heard during the horrific incident.
Joe Pugh said girlfriend Leah Washington screamed in pain and he described a bloody scene as they sat trapped in the Smiler ride at Alton Towers.
The pair were among five seriously injured people caught up in the crash earlier this month which resulted in the Staffordshire theme park closing for six days.
Mr Pugh, 18, whose knees were shattered in the crash, said: “I remember a sickening bang with metal grinding against metal and the safety bar being rammed against my knees. There was blood everywhere.”
Ms Washington, 17, from Barnsley in South Yorkshire, suffered the most serious injuries, having her left leg amputated above the knee and being treated for a fractured hand. It was Mr Pugh’s fourth time on the Smiler ride, which was the first rollercoaster he had been on, but he vowed never to venture on to a ride again after what had happened.
He said he and the others had been forced to get off twice before it began so staff could carry out safety checks, and then described a 20-minute delay as the rollercoaster paused on one of the loops.
Mr Pugh said the excited screams of fellow passengers turned to horrified ones moments after when they were stuck in the carriage at a 45-degree angle.
“We couldn’t believe what we were seeing,” he said. Immediately after the crash, Mr Pugh became angry when he saw a girl taking a video of the trapped thrillseekers.
Ms Washington’s brother Luke has spoken of his sister’s “rapid recovery”. He said: “Each day has gone by and she has improved.”