The Press and Journal (Inverness, Highlands, and Islands)
‘I thought Simon was dead’
Aberdeen man’ s head was ‘open to the bone’ after bus hit branches
An Aberdeen man remains in a critical but stable condition following a bus crash in Malta last Monday.
Relatives of Simon Morrison returned to Aberdeen last night to try to get back to “some kind of normality” but other family members have flown out to the Mediterranean island to keep a bedside vigil.
Mr Morrison arrived on the island the day before the accident with his sister Suzanne Henderson, her husband Michael and their two children, Kelsey and Kieran.
I think doctors are happy with his progress, but it’s early days’
The group were on board an open-top sightseeing bus which crashed into a tree killing two tourists sitting directly behind Mr Morrison and his nephew Kieran.
Last night, back in Aberdeen, Michael Henderson described the scene of horror after the crash, but said they “still have no memory” of how it happened.
He said: “We were driving along and the next thing I know is that I’m waking up to see Simon’s head wound. I thought he was dead.
“The doctors weren’t sure what had caused his wounds, whether it was the branch or the yellow metal bar that was ripped from the side of the bus.
“His head was open right to the bone. I’ll never forget it.”
Mr Morrison is still in an induced coma but has had his oxygen levels reduced from 100% to 75, which his brother-in-law Mr Henderson said was “encouraging”.
“I think they are happy with his progress, but it is still early days,” he said.
“The Maltese people were amazing, especially all the hospital staff. I had been knocked out so I was kept in overnight.”
Mr Henderson said he was interviewed on the day of the accident as an inquiry started immediately.
The group were touring the town of Sliema and decided to wait for the last bus to take them back.
Mr Henderson said: “We were going to get the one o’clock bus, but decided to sit at a bar and get the two o’clock instead.
The driver turned up late, at about ten past two and was running behind schedule. Suzie thinks he was going too fast, but I can’t remember.
“Simon was first on and he chose where sit.”
Mr Morrison recently recovered from a stroke and returned to Middlefield Wasps to coach youth football teams.
Mr Henderson said he was planning to return to Malta soon to ensure someone was with Mr Morrison when he wakes up.