Man whose body was held together with a BLANKET after he was hit by a 15 tonne lorry and declared dead twice makes a miraculous recovery

A man has miraculously cheated death after being hit by a 15 tonne lorry - leaving him so badly injured his insides were left strewn across the road.
Lewis Godfrey, 23, suffered such horrendous injuries that doctors on the scene pronounced him dead twice.
A team of 34 doctors and nurses were called in to battle to save his life after holding his body parts together in a blanket.

Lewis Godfrey has miraculously cheated death after being hit by a 15 tonne lorry - leaving him so badly injured his insides were left strewn across the road

He had a bleed in his head, with a substantial head injury, and his skin had been ripped off his body in a band about a foot wide. His bowel had been damaged and his bladder ripped off.
Mr Godfrey, from Loughborough, Leicestershire, went on to spend 16 days in a coma, was expected never to walk again and to have brain damage.
But five months after the horror smash, he has made a full recovery.
He said: 'It has taken a while for everything to sink in. Sometimes I can’t believe I’m here. I can’t remember anything from the fight or the accident, but I am really shocked when my dad tells me bits about what happened.
'I think it’s probably just as well I can’t remember anything. I was gutted when the doctors told me I would never walk again, but I was just glad to be here.
'I was determined to get my life back on track now, and with the help of a lot of people, I’m now able to walk around again.'

As well as suffering a substantial head injury, his skin had been ripped off his body in a band about a foot wide

Mr Godfrey, a cable technician, also had his bladder ripped off and suffered bowel damage and a broken pelvis

Mr Godfrey, a cable technician, was on a night out in the town on June 2 when he was attacked by a group of men - who punched him in the head and pushed him into the road, where he was dragged under the wheels of a lorry.
He continued to be dragged along as the truck as the driver was unaware he had hit someone, 
The doctor pronounced Mr Godfrey dead at the scene after his heart had stopped beating - but incredibly, he came back to life.
In the ambulance his heartbeat stopped again as his body was held together by a blanket - but paramedics battled to restart it.
He suffered from huge blood loss, severe head injuries, a broken pelvis and ripped all of the muscle off his upper right leg.
A titanium plate was inserted into his skull to keep the shape of the head relatively normal.

Mr Godfrey had a skin graft on his right thigh to correct the foot-long skin damage

Five months after the horror smash, Mr Godfrey has made a full recovery

Mr Godfrey went on to spend 16 days in a coma, was expected never to walk again and to have brain damage.
He said: 'When they told me I wouldn’t be able to walk again it was overwhelming. But with some help I managed to learn to walk again in six months.'
'It was a strain at first - I couldn’t even feed myself but it’s a lot better now.
Mr Godfrey was treated at Nottingham Queens Medical Centre and has 34 people to thank for his incredible recovery.
Dr Nicholas Foster, the first doctor on the scene, said when he examined Mr Godfrey, he was already dead.

He has since taught himself to walk again

Dr Foster, who was working as a volunteer GP with paramedics that night, said: 'He had already died at the scene. When I got there, I saw the most horrific injuries - he had been ripped open.
'The level of trauma was so massive he shouldn’t have made it. I knew I had to stop the bleeding, so we put him back together and wrapped him up to keep him in one piece.'
On the night he was admitted to the QMC he was operated on by surgeon, Mr Daren Forward.
Mr Forward said: 'When he came in it was clear he’d been crushed under a lorry. He had a bleed in his head, with a substantial head injury.
'The skin had essentially been ripped off his body in a band about a foot wide. His bowel had been damaged and his bladder ripped off.'
Mr Godfrey's father Graham, 48, said: 'When we first arrived at the hospital, we were only allowed to see Lewis very briefly.
'They draped a sheet over him to cover his injuries, and I held his hand for a bit, and whispered in his ear to keep fighting.
'There were at least 12 tubes in him, and there was a huge bandage wrapped around his head.'
But five months on, his son is fighting fit - and even hopes to be back at work by January.
He added: 'I’m lucky and my heart goes out to everyone single person that helped look after me. Without them I wouldn’t be here today.'