A Morrisons worker who suffered 87 per cent burns across his body following a gas explosion at his flat was brought back to life after suffering a heart attack.
Kyle Roe had ‘skin hanging off his body’ and widespread full thickness burns after turning on a light switch at the home he shared with his girlfriend.
The 19-year-old, from Chippenham in Wiltshire spent seven weeks in an induced coma and underwent 13 surgeries to grow new skin on his body after all of the skin on his back, neck, legs and arms was removed to the nerve endings.
Kyle Roe, 19, had ‘skin hanging off his body’ and 87 per cent full thickness burns following a gas explosion in his flat in Chippenham, Wiltshere. Roe had ‘skin hanging off his body’ and widespread full thickness burns after turning on a light switch at his shared flat
Skin grown in a lab was sprayed on to his body to replace the removed tissue on his back, neck, legs and arms.
Now, 13 weeks later, Kyle, is still recovering in hospital and is currently learning to walk again.
Kyle’s mother, Tracy, 45, said: ‘When we first saw him in the back of the ambulance his skin was hanging off of his entire body. It’s a picture that will never leave my mind – it was horrifying.
‘We have been told that Kyle was able to get himself out of the flat after the gas explosion, but when he was found he was rolling around the floor because he thought he was on fire.
‘His skin had to be grown in a lab and skin cells sprayed onto his body as he had very few areas of his own remaining.
‘It’s now been almost four months since the explosion and he’s doing better than could have been envisaged – but he’s struggling to cope with what has happened to him.’
The 19-year-old, from Chippenham in Wiltshire spent seven weeks in an induced coma and underwent 13 surgeries to grow new skin on his body after all of the skin on his back, neck, legs and arms was removed to the nerve endings
Skin grown in a lab was sprayed on to his body to replace the removed tissue on his back, neck, legs and arms. Now, 13 weeks later, Kyle, is still recovering in hospital and is currently learning to walk again
The explosion happened at 6pm on October 18, 2017, when Kyle, switched on a light to get ready for work.
But flicking the switch triggered a devastating gas explosion in the bathroom he shared with his girlfriend, leaving him fighting for his life.
Emergency services arrived at the scene and rushed him to Bristol Southmead hospital, where he was then transferred to a specialist burns unit in Swansea.
Kyle’s mother, Tracy, 45, said: ‘When we first saw him in the back of the ambulance his skin was hanging off of his entire body. It’s a picture that will never leave my mind – it was horrifying’
Tracy added: ‘In the ambulance on the way to Swansea, Kyle suffered a cardiac arrest but was thankfully resuscitated.
‘Shortly after that he was put into an induced coma and was on life support for seven weeks because of the severity of his injuries.
‘As soon as he arrived at the hospital, debridement of the burnt skin started which was ongoing over several days so he didn’t suffer from sepsis.
Flicking the switch triggered a devastating gas explosion in the bathroom he shared with his girlfriend, leaving him fighting for his life
‘Over the first 8 weeks, the burns unit in intensive care started to focus on his skin grafts, alongside managing multiple infections, community acquired pneumonia, acute respiratory distress syndrome and the need to go on dialysis to support his kidneys.
‘He had to have 13 separate skin graft operations to cover his body with skin again, three of which just being on the front of his neck.
‘He has extensive scarring and is in constant pain but he’s just thankful to be alive as he knows it could’ve all been over in the back of the ambulance.’
Since receiving his new skin, Kyle has been focusing on learning how to walk again but is still reliant on a wheelchair due to getting exhausted very quickly.
However despite his legs recovering well from the skin graft, his upper body is struggling and it is looking likely that Kyle will need other operations in six-months to release skin tightness and contractures.
Tracy said: ‘We are currently trying to raise £3000 to be able to get Kyle a deep oscillation machine that Bristol Southmead hospital does not have.
Since receiving his new skin, Kyle has been focusing on learning how to walk again but is still reliant on a wheelchair due to getting exhausted very quickly (the carnage left behind following the explosion)
However despite his legs recovering well from the skin graft, his upper body is struggling and it is looking likely that Kyle will need other operations in six-months to release skin tightness and contractures (the carnage left behind following the explosion)
‘This will allow his skin to become less tight and infected, and will stop it being so bruised, delicate and from bleeding so much.
‘Without this machine he’ll have to have further surgery and spend longer in hospital, when ideally we want to try to move on from this as soon as possible.
‘Kyle is a very active boy and it’s horrible to think that he won’t be able to return to that. It’s scary but we don’t know what his quality of life will be just yet.’
Donate to Kyle’s Deep Oscillation machine fund here