Rotherham man’s life saved by a dressing gown cord after leg left ‘barely attached’ after garden mishap
After the spinning blade sliced through his leg, Paul Milroy’s son’s quick thinking – and a dressing gown belt - saved his life.
The 67-year-old nearly lost his life when a circular saw sliced through his leg - leaving it “barely attached” - in a shocking garden accident.
Paul was cutting a tree stump in his son’s garden in Hellaby, near Rotherham, when the saw jammed and catapulted back into his leg.
The blade shattered both the tibia and fibula and caused catastrophic bleeding.
In a moment of pure instinct, Paul’s son grabbed a dressing gown belt and tied it tightly around his father’s leg, to stem the bleeding.
This saved his life, while they waited for help to arrive.
Dr Paul Onion said the injury was one of the most severe they had seen.
“The saw had completely broken the bone, and the lower leg was barely attached by tissue,” he said.
Emergency crews rushed to the scene and called for Yorkshire Air Ambulance’s Critical Care Team for advanced treatment, including stronger pain relief and the ability to give blood.
Within eight minutes, the helicopter crew landed in a nearby field.
Paramedic Tom Chatwyn packed the wound with Celox gauze, a military-style clotting agent, and the team applied a medical tourniquet and pressure bandage to finally control the bleeding.
Paul was then given ketamine to manage the excruciating pain as the team realigned his leg on scene - crucial to prevent nerve and vessel damage - before securing it in a vacuum splint.
He was airlifted to Northern General Hospital in Sheffield, where surgeons spent five and a half hours fitting metal plates to rebuild his leg.
Paul spent 10 nights in hospital and is now recovering at home, using crutches and facing a long road to full mobility.
Despite the trauma, Paul said he feels “incredibly lucky” and praised his son’s calm actions.
“Without him, it could have been a very different story,” he said.
The dramatic incident will be shown in this week’s episode of Yorkshire Air 999, airing tonight at 9pm on Really and discovery+.
This gripping episode also features a teenage motocross rider with a shattered femur, a cricket injury gone wrong, and a cyclist trapped under a van.
Yorkshire Air Ambulance relies on public donations to keep flying. More information at www.yaa.org.uk.