Human fireball: Miracle man
Published: January 11, 2007
Doctors gave Tim Attwater a 20 per cent chance of surviving after an exploding can of paint thinners turned him into a human fireball.
The freak accident on July 8, last year left the popular Eaglehawk man with about 85 per cent burns to his body and he was in a medically induced coma for seven weeks.
But less than six months on, Tim is back on his feet and has returned home to fiancee Sharon and their three sons, James, 6, Connor, 4, and two-year-old Brayden.
Tim’s comeback from the brink of death has been credited to the swift work of Bendigo paramedics and hospital staff as well as his action after the accident, which he learned from a first aid course he had just completed.
He now wants to raise awareness of the dangers of keeping cans of thinners that are not full in hot areas.
The accident happened after Tim went into the shed to put some more wood on a securely-covered fire.
He was about four metres away from the thinners can, which was less than half full.
The heat caused the container to explode.
“The liquid hit me,” Tim said.
“Once it got a naked flame, I turned into a fireball.
“I got out of the shed and I stopped, dropped and rolled.”
He used his hands to shield his face from the flames.
“I shed my clothes as I was going,”
Tim said.
He got in the shower with warm running water while Sharon called an ambulance.
Rural Ambulance Victoria mica paramedic Eric Lee said Tim did all the right things.
He remembers talking to Tim straight after the accident.
“Often you find these patients - I’ve been to a number like that and
I’m sure it’s the same for the other paramedics - they’re talking to you, you just know that that’s the last time they’ll talk to someone,” he said.
The paramedics put Tim on a clean sheet then onto a stretcher and into the ambulance.
“The extent of his burns meant it was difficult for us to get an IV (intravenous drip) into him to give him pain relief,” he said.
“We did gave him pain relief that he inhaled and we took him to hospital.
“During that time, he was still conscious of what was going on.
“In hospital, that’s when they took over the care and put him in a medically-induced sleep.”
Tim was flown from Bendigo Hospital to the Alfred Hospital in Melbourne where he eventually came out of the coma.
While he could remember the accident, he did not realise the severity of his burns, particularly the damage to his arms and legs.
“I said (to the nurse) can I go home,” Tim recalled.
It has been and still is a slow road to recovery.
He has had skin grafts and requires further surgery to his hands.
Tim’s burns mean he must wear a protective body suit 23 hours a day.
He was discharged from hospital on November 30, last year and has only been walking for about 10 weeks.
But the fact he is walking at all is an amazing feat which he puts down to the good work of paramedics and hospital staff.
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