TheBanyanTree: Mountain Odyssey (2)

[Roger Pye]

Jane (his partner) arrived at Girona the next day with her older brother 
Anthony. Richard's forehead was fractured and his cheekbones badly 
damaged, the surgeons had operated by then, put a titanium plate in his 
forehead and dug chips of bone out of his eyes. His right eye was 
completely closed and they feared he had lost or would lose the sight of 
it. He also had a broken rib, was black and blue all over his body, his 
face swollen out of all proportion and he had a chest infection from 
being in the freezing water as well.

The prognosis then was that he would be in hospital for weeks and would 
not be able to fly back to England at the end of it. In the event he and 
Jane flew back on the 27th May, 12 days after the accident. This is the 
update she sent out the next day:

> Hello.  Writing to tell you that Richard and I travelled home from Girona last night.  He has made an incredible recovery.  Certainly from the sight that greeted me when I flew out from England to be with him on Saturday 16th., I marvel at how good  he is now.    The Spanish doctors say it was a terrible fracture.  But they have mended his breakage and put the plate in his forehead.  His face looks almost "normal" now all the swelling and bruising had gone and although his right eye isnt opening fully his sight is almost back to normal.
> 
> He has a scar with 65 metal staples in it across the top of his head and a jagged scar with 10 staples and some ordinary stiches in his forehead. A broken rib and lots of bruising to the body, The staples will prbably be taken out on Monday and he is being referred to a neuro/ craniel specialist here to assess the situation to see if he requires any further ops.
> 
> He will be off work and can't drive for a few weeks.  But basically he is up and about and back to his normal cheerfull self. Amazing.
> 


roger