He starts a new job and loses his legs after fifteen minutes

He starts a new job and loses his legs after fifteen minutes
He starts a new job and loses his legs after fifteen minutes

John O’Neill had finally gotten his life back on track. He had just gotten out of rehab, found a place to live in Broomfield, Colorado, was sober and had landed a job he loved: as a lumberjack. On September 23, the 33-year-old American started his new job, full of enthusiasm. He was then equipped with an electronic bracelet which he wore on his ankle, by court order. It was precisely this accessory that caused his downfall.

Fifteen minutes after starting his new job, while the 30-year-old was busy throwing wood into a chipper, a hook-shaped branch, dragged by the blades, got stuck under John’s ankle bracelet. The branch then acted as a gripper and pulled it into the machine. Before his horrified eyes, the shredder attacked his boots, his feet, then moved up both of his legs to above the knee. His colleagues being busy further away with headphones on, no one heard the unfortunate man’s cries of pain.

It took a minute before they realized what was happening, John told the Denver Post. The blades continuing their infernal advance, the thirty-year-old began to fear an atrocious end: “I feared much more than losing my leg or my foot. (…) I went very quickly from a fight for my leg to a fight for my life,” says the victim, who says he did not feel the pain, under the effect of adrenaline. Fortunately, a lumberjack managed to pull John from the clutches of the machine before it attacked his waist.

During his helicopter ride to the hospital, the American “technically died”, his heart having stopped, he explains. The rest of his legs had to be amputated and 7 liters of blood were necessary for his survival. “Basically, they replaced all the blood in my body,” testifies the miracle victim. “It’s beyond a miracle that John is still with us, and he’s fighting harder than ever. Our friend has always been quite reckless and has always put his life in danger! While being a warrior in life,” we can read on a GoFundMe page created by a friend.

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