15-year-old Zach Michales suffered devastating injuries after he was knocked down by a car
Zach Michaels was seriously injured when he was hit by a Honda Civic on December 22 (Image: Maria Michaels)
A teenage boy who had his leg amputated after being hit by a car just days before Christmas is still unaware of the life-changing injuries he has suffered, his family said.
15-year-old Zach Michaels was riding his bike home from his friend’s house on the evening of Sunday December 22 and was on Bracknell Avenue outside Kirkby High School when he was hit by a car that his mum claims was driving at around 70mph.
The driver of the vehicle drove off without stopping, leaving Zach badly injured as passers-by rushed to help. The teenager had suffered several open fractures and other serious injuries and was taken to Alder Hey Children’s Hospital by air ambulance.
Zach’s injuries were so severe that he was forced to undergo a total of seven operations in a week. After two failed bypasses where surgeons transferred two major veins from his legs to his lower foot. Devastatingly the decision was made to amputate his right leg above his knee on December 29.
The shocking full list of injuries suffered by Zach after the crash includes multiple open fractures to his right leg and a defining injury to his right calf, multiple open fractures to his right upper arm, elbow and wrist with severe tendon damage, multiple open fractures to his left arm and wrist, multiple fractures to his pelvis and fractured vertebrae which were found after later scans at the hospital. The teen is also wearing a neck brace due to ligament damage in his neck and has also suffered a punctured lung.
Zach, who had been placed on a ventilator after the incident, has now come off the machine, his family said. His aunty Shemina Wright told the ECHO: “He was woken up yesterday and taken off the ventilator. He’s very spaced out and confused as he is coming off the drugs that kept him asleep. He’s still unaware of what’s happened to him, it’s going to hit him hard.”
Ms Wright has set up Justgiving page to help Zach’s family at this difficult time, which is closing in on raising £4,000. You can contribute to the fundraiser here.
In an earlier appeal for information from police, the force said a grey Honda Civic car failed to stop following the crash and is believed to have driven away in the general direction of Bewley Drive and Broad Lane. Police said enquiries are ongoing to locate the car and the driver involved.
Detective Sergeant Andy Roper from the Matrix Serious Collision Investigation Unit said: “Our thoughts are with the boy and his family at this time. It is beyond belief that someone would drive away from such an incident and leave behind a seriously injured rider on the road.
“I would urge anyone who may have witnessed the collision or was travelling in the area at the time with a dashcam fitted to their vehicle to make contact with our team. Also, if you live in the area and have a CCTV system, I would be grateful if you could check your footage to see if this car passes or can be seen.”