The family of Lewis Rimmer have given an update on his care
A beloved dad-of-two who has spent nearly five months in hospital after being knocked down by a Range Rover in Bolton last year is recovering well, his wife has said.
41-year Lewis Rimmer, who owns a garage in the Bromley Cross area, was knocked down outside a Sainsburys Local on October 27 last year.
He had gone inside to buy a lottery ticket and was in the car park outside the store when he was struck, getting crushed against a steel pillar before the car then ploughed into the shop building.
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Lewis sustained severe injuries in the incident, including a broken pelvis, broken femur and ruptures to his internal organs. He was airlifted to the Royal Preston Hospital where he spent more than four months being treated – including three weeks in a coma – before being moved to Salford Royal at the end of February.
Lewis’ wife Sarah told the M.E.N that the move to Salford Royal would make outpatients appointments easier when he is ‘hopefully’ discharged.
“He is doing really well,” Sarah said. “It’s about the physical and rehab side of things now, doing really simple things. He’s been in hospital for nearly five months so it’s building everything up again, being able to sit up and sit on the edge of the bed.
“Everyone at Salford and Preston have been amazing, the care he has had has been incredible,” she continued. “I think it’s just time he needs now.”
Describing the months since the accident, she said: “It has turned our lives upside down. We’re coming to terms with a different way of life.
“The start was just getting through it, he was in a coma for 3 weeks and we were told to prepare for it all as nobody know how it would go.”
In the intervening months, Lewis has undergone approximately 40 hours of surgery and multiple tests. The couple’s two young daughters have been able to visit their dad ‘a couple of times a week’.
“It’s hard on him being away from the girls, he really misses them,” Sarah said. “It’s five months he shouldn’t be away from his children.
“They’ve had to adjust to a lot, and we all will. There are things we used to do so normally before, but there’s now there’s adaptations we’re still getting our heads around.”
The driver of the Range Rover, a 56-year-old man, was arrested on suspicion of causing serious injury by dangerous driving and driving whilst unfit through drugs.
He was later bailed pending further enquiries. The M.E.N understands from GMP that no-one has been charged in relation to the incident.
“The police have been fantastic,” said Sarah. “They’ve been keeping us updated throughout and I can’t fault them. We’re in their hands, we’ll trust the process and wait to hear from them if something has changed.”
Despite the hardship they have endured, Sarah said that being positive has helped them come to terms with what’s happened. “Lewis is a very positive person and I think we’re all following that,” she said.
“When you read what happened on paper, it is horrific and it shouldn’t have happened. It would be easy to get into a negative headspace but doing that isn’t going to change anything or do us any favours.
“All the energy is concentrated on Lewis being alright. We’ll have days where things are really difficult, but I need to be strong for the girls.
“There might come a time when that changes, we might get home and come back to reality. I’m still running on adrenaline five months later. But we’re concentrated on getting Lewis back home.”
In the meantime, Sarah said she had received countless messages from the local community and beyond. “People we don’t even know have been reaching out, he is well known in the village and it happened practically on people’s doorsteps.
“The local area has been really supportive and people have sent a lot of well wishes. That, and close friends and family, are getting us through.”
