Man has legs amputated after accident at Camellia recycling plant

Australian Associated Press

Once the patient was freed, paramedics performed a minor procedure there
at the scene to amputate both legs said Ambulance emergency doctor Michael
Novy.

The man remained conscious as his legs were crushed and virtually severed
by an industrial paper compactor in Sydney.

The 37-year-old contract worker became trapped in the machinery at a
Camellia waste recycling centre near Rosehill, in Sydney's west, about
midday (AEST) on Thursday.

He endured a horrific three-hour ordeal that ended with the amputation of both
his legs by paramedics. The accident had left the man in a critical condition in
the intensive care unit of Westmead Hospital.

The man, who has not been identified, lost both legs not far below the hips.

The incident is being investigated by WorkCover NSW.

"(Paramedics) were faced with a man trapped by heavy machinery with
significant injuries to his lower limbs and two to three hours were spent trying
to free him," Dr Novy said."He was a fully conscious patient who they had to
sedate ... to keep him calm and work out a method of freeing him."In cases such
as this, having a fully conscious patient can be very challenging because they
are aware of what has happened to them and quite understandably go into
quite severe shock."Dr Novy said there was no hope of saving the man's legs." ...

Once the patient was freed, paramedics performed a minor procedure there
at the scene to amputate both legs - minor because most of the amputation
had already happened during the incident itself," he said."This was very much
a time-critical mission."It's a terrible accident which has occurred. It's something
we train all our medical teams in but it's something that we do, thankfully,
on an irregular basis."

Friday, 12 June 2009