A COWDENBEATH man crushed by a forklift and left in “unbearable” pain after his organs collapsed says the swift response by the Scottish Ambulance Service saved his life.

Gordon Taylor, 55, was working at a paper mill in Leslie when the horrific accident happened.

Gordon was working for an engineering company, based in Kirkcaldy, and had been contracted out to work at the mill for the day.

It was a Monday morning and Gordon was walking through the mill. A colleague, operating a forklift, accidentally struck Gordon.

He explained: “It caught me on the hip, on my left side, and a concrete wall was on the right. I was crushed against the wall.”

The forklift was pinned against him. He then felt his organs collapse, adding: “As soon as it was moved, I hit the floor. That’s when I realised how bad I was – the first thing I felt was my legs and toes.

“I could not move and the pain was unbearable.

Given the seriousness of Gordon’s injuries, an air ambulance crew, which included Billy Burns and Colin Hird onboard, was dispatched. They were backed by Dr Jayne McKinlay and Dr Alastair Baird, who were part of the on duty EMRS (Emergency Medical Retrieval Service) team.

Gordon was airlifted to Ninewells and spent three days in intensive care.

The accident resulted in Gordon suffering a broken femur, a broken right hip, a ruptured bladder and five fractures of the pelvis. His urethra was also torn off his bladder and his kidneys were failing.

Gordon was operated on the following day and later moved to the High Dependency Unit before he was eventually transferred to Victoria Hospital in Kirkcaldy.

He added: “They saved my life that day – the air ambulance was quicker and the transfer time was critical."

Gordon’s brother Brian Taylor has set up a fundraising page, raising money for SCAA (Scotland’s Charity Air Ambulance). See Page 25.