Passenger on killer turbulence plane so badly hurt he may have to give up job

Telegraph reporters
·3-min read
Injured Bradley Richards
Bradley Richards recalls how he woke up with blood pouring from his head - SWNS

A passenger on the Singapore Airlines flight hit by severe turbulence that led to the death of a British man believes he will have to change careers after suffering life-changing injuries.

Bradley Richards, 29, was left with six fractures in his spine and neck and internal bleeding after flight SQ321, from London to Singapore, dropped 176ft in four seconds.

Geoff Kitchen, 73, died from a suspected heart attack while many more were injured, some severely.

Mr Richards believes he was knocked unconscious and woke up with blood pouring from his head.

The deep cut to his head he suffered in the incident
The deep cut Bradley Richards suffered to his head in the incident - SWNS

After using a pillow to stem the blood flow, he says he “immediately felt spinal pain” and had to be lifted into a wheelchair when the plane landed in Bangkok.

The telecoms engineer from Benfleet, Essex, described the experience as like “something out of a movie”.

He suffered multiple fractures to the spine and neck, a spinal epidural hematoma and a cut to his head requiring 20 stitches.

Doctors have told Mr Richards it is unlikely he will be able to return to work in his current role as an engineer.

He said: “It’s just gutting – I’ve worked in that role for seven years and I couldn’t imagine doing anything else.”

Bradley Richards and a friend seen on holiday
Bradley Richards and a friend seen on holiday. He described the plane falling as 'like something out of a movie' - SWNS

He has been receiving treatment in a hospital in Bangkok and is currently unsure when he’ll be able to return to the UK.

Mr Richards said: “It’s not been pleasant, I can assure you that, but I try my best to remain positive and the airline and hospital have been so good to me. The health care is second to none.”

Early findings by The Transport Safety Investigation Bureau (TSIB) show that the plane experienced a rapid change in acceleration upwards and downwards causing injuries to those without seatbelts on.

Mr Richards said: “I was asleep or I think I might have been knocked unconscious when it happened.

“I remember waking up and my head was just pouring with blood, kids were screaming, people running around everywhere, it was so frantic. It was like something out of a movie.

“I remember I felt the back pain straight away and blood was just pouring from my head.

“I tried to use my cushion to stem the blood – one of the ones they hand out for on the flights.

“Once we landed, I was near the back of the plane and I remember the medical staff running on and having to step over all the injured people on the floor.

“They couldn’t get a stretcher to me so I was supported off the plane.

“I told them about my spinal pain and the workers had to pick me up, support me under my armpits and carry me to a wheelchair.

“I guess they couldn’t fit a stretcher right down the back because of the people on the floor or they might not have picked up on it due to all the chaos happening.

“I was just a bit quiet in the aftermath, to be honest – it all felt so surreal. I didn’t scream or anything.

“It was just all so traumatic. When I came round and saw people on the floor, being stretchered – like I say, it felt like something from a movie, not real life.”

Richard was given a makeshift bandage on the plane
Richard was given a makeshift bandage on the plane - SWNS

The TSIB preliminary investigation findings reveal that the plane dropped 178ft (54m) in just four seconds.

The agency says this likely caused the injuries to the crew and passengers.

Authorities believe Mr Kitchen, from Thornbury, near Bristol, died from a suspected heart attack after the extreme turbulence.

He had been travelling with his wife for a six-week holiday to Singapore, Indonesia and Australia.

  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next
  • Up next

Latest stories

  • With 2.3 million Malaysian adults living with three NCDs, doctors warn of serious public health risks

    KUALA LUMPUR, July 2 — The key findings from the newly-released National Health and Morbidity Survey 2023 by the Health...

  • Gastro Doctors Share The 1 Food They Never (Or Rarely) Eat

    The experts on gas, bloating, colon cancer and other digestive issues share what they avoid themselves.

  • Nearly 500 people hospitalised in Japan after taking red yeast supplements

    Kobayashi Pharmaceutical’s beni koji dietary supplements have been linked to 175 deaths so far

  • Husband and Wife, 70 and 71, Die Together Through Euthanasia: 'There Is No Other Solution'

    "I’ve lived my life, I don’t want pain anymore,” said Jan Faber before his death

  • LAS introduces 'cuddle pockets' for grieving parents to take miscarried babies to hospital

    Knitted pouches will allow bereaved families to hold baby after birth and in ambulance

  • What you need to do if you get COVID this summer

    Experts are warning we are in the midst of a summer COVID wave as infections are on the rise.

  • Why you should eat more whole grains like quinoa, farro and oats

    Even if you're being mindful of carbohydrates, here's why should still eat whole grains.

  • For better brain function, have a healthy diet starting young. But don't worry, it's never too late to start.

    How you eat is linked to better brain function, a new study finds.

  • Herpes costs the world billions in medical care and productivity losses, study finds

    Researchers estimated the economic cost of genital herpes across the globe in 2016, with the Western Pacific region and the Americas the most burdened.

  • Australia restricts sale of e-cigarettes to pharmacies in tough new vaping regulation

    Australians will need prescriptions to buy vapes and even then they cannot purchase the most popular flavours

  • Tom Hanks's son, Chet Hanks, recalls drug addiction rock bottom

    Tom Hanks's son, Chet Hanks, recalls drug addiction rock bottom. The rap star, 33, is the son of Hollywood legend Tom and Sleepless in Seattle actress Rita Wilson, and has struggled with drug addiction in the past. In a new interview, he recalled being alarmed when other drug abusers told him they were concerned over the amount of cocaine he was taking. He told the Raw Talk podcast, "The drug I had the most problem with was just f**kingcoke, dude. I'm a f**king cokehead, straight-up."

  • Some Nebraskans say misleading words led them to sign petitions on abortion they don't support

    Tea Rohrberg was heading into her county's treasurer's office in Omaha, Nebraska, on Monday when she says she was approached by a man and asked if she wanted to sign a “pro-choice petition.” Because she believes access to abortion is a right all women should have, she readily signed.

  • Early menopause linked to increased risk of breast and ovarian cancer

    Some women who experience early menopause could have an increased risk of developing breast and ovarian cancer, according to new research.

  • Midwife on the frontline of climate change on Pakistan's islands

    On a densely populated island off Pakistan's megacity of Karachi, a group of pregnant women wait in a punishing heatwave for the only midwife to arrive from the mainland.Each week Neha Mankani comes by boat ambulance to Baba, an old fishing settlement and reportedly one of the world's most crowded islands with around 6,500 people crammed into 0.15 square kilometres (0.06 miles).Climate change is swelling the surrounding seas and baking the land with rising temperatures. Until Mankani's ambulance launched last year, expectant mothers were marooned at the mercy of the elements.At the gate of her island clinic waits 26-year-old Zainab Bibi, pregnant again after a second-trimester miscarriage last summer."It was a very hot day, I was not feeling well," she recalled. It took her husband hours of haggling with boat owners before one agreed to ferry them to the mainland -- but it was too late."By the time I delivered my baby in the hospital, she was already dead," she said.- Summer heat hits pregnancies -Heatwaves are becoming hotter, longer and more frequent in Pakistan, one of the countries most vulnerable to extreme weather conditions resulting from climate change.In May and June, a string of heatwaves have seen temperatures top 52 degrees Celcius (126 degrees Fahrenheit) for days."Climate change doesn't affect everyone equally," 38-year-old Mankani told AFP during the 20-minute boat journey. "Pregnant women and newborns, postpartum women are definitely more affected," she said."In the summer months, we see a real increase in low-birth weights, preterm births, and in pregnancy losses."Women are at higher risk of stillbirth when exposed to temperatures above 90 percent of the normal range for their location, according to experts published in the British Journal of Obstetrics and Gynaecology last year."Before we didn't have the evidence, a lot of it was anecdotal," said Mankani. "But we've been seeing the impact of climate change for a while."In Pakistan, 154 women die for every 100,000 live births -— a high maternal mortality rate shaped by socioeconomic status, barriers to healthcare access and limited decision-making powers, especially among young women, according to the United Nations.Mankani began her 16-year career as a midwife in a Karachi hospital, where she worked at a high-risk ward, often treating women from the five islands dotted off the coast.She founded the Mama Baby Fund in 2015 and set up the first clinics on the islands for expectant and new mothers. "Everyone opened their homes to us," she said.The free 24/7 boat ambulance followed last year, crucially equipped to navigate rough seas in a region increasingly prone to flooding.Sabira Rashid, 26, gave birth to a girl she named Eesha two months ago, following one stillbirth and a miscarriage at seven months -- painful losses she blames on not reaching the hospital in time."At the dock, they make us wait because they don't want to ferry only two or three people. They told us to wait for more passengers, no matter what the emergency," she said. - Rising, dirty waters -Girls on the impoverished islands are often wed as young as 16, with marriage considered the source of security for women in an area where polluted water is killing off the fishing trade."Most of these girls don't know how to take care of themselves, they get severe infections from the dirty water they are constantly exposed to," said Shahida Sumaar, an assistant at the clinic, wiping the sweat from her face.The 45-year-old said basic advice is offered to young mothers during heatwaves, such as using dry, clean towels to wrap their newborns in, washing their breasts before feeding and staying hydrated.But with no access to running water and little electricity, warding off heat stress is a challenge for all the islanders.Women are at particular risk, typically responsible for cooking over open flames in small rooms with no fans or proper ventilation. Ayesha Mansoor, 30, has four children and lives on the fringes of Baba, with just four to five hours of electricity a day.The path to her home is covered by a carpet of discarded plastic bags which disappear underwater when the tide is high."Only those who have solar can deal better with the heat. We can't afford it," she said, swatting away flies that settled on her baby.Mariam Abubakr, an 18-year-old assistant at the clinic who has grown up on the island, hopes to become its first full-time midwife."I used to wonder why we women didn't have any facilities here, a clinic that could just cater to us," she said."When Neha opened her clinic, I saw a way that I could help the women of my community."srq/ecl/rsc/dhw

  • Jackie Chan the Rescued Koala Released Back Into the Wild for Second Time

    An adorable 3-year-old rescued koala named Jackie Chan was recently released back into the wild near Glen Oak, New South Wales, after recovering from chlamydia in a local koala hospital.Jackie Chan has been twice been in the care of the Port Stephens Koala Hospital. This time, he was there for about three months, the hospital told Storyful.The hospital shares regular updates on the progress of the koalas in its care via YouTube and Facebook. Credit: Port Stephens Koala Hospital via Storyful

  • Thursday, not Tuesday: PM Anwar raps home minister for batik blunder in Parliament

    KUALA LUMPUR, July 2 — Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim today admonished Home Minister Datuk Seri Saifuddin Nasut...

  • Abused husky rescued after viral video, owner files police report demanding his dog back (VIDEO)

    KUALA LUMPUR, JULY 3 — A viral video showing a man beating his dog, a husky, while his other, smaller dog cowered in a c...

  • Singapore’s new S$20,000 cash declaration rules: What Malaysians need to know

    Singapore has implemented new regulations since May requiring all travellers to declare cash exceeding S$20,000 (RM69...

  • Michelle Obama the only Biden alternative who would beat Trump

    The only prospective candidate who could beat Donald Trump in the presidential election is Michelle Obama, according to a new poll.

  • Death Of Teenage Badminton Star Prompts Outrage Over Delayed Medical Response

    Video from the incident shows tournament officials watching Chinese athlete Zhang Zhijie for around 40 seconds before medical help arrives.