Teenager shows awful injuries in bid to warn of seatbelt need

Horrific: the injuries suffered by Dayle Harper show the need to wear a seatbelt
13 April 2012

This is the powerful picture car crash schoolgirl Dayle Harper wants readers to see today as she warned others to wear seatbelts.

The 14-year-old suffered terrible injuries and was almost killed in the horror smash on the outskirts of Ipswich, Suffolk.

Brave Dayle is now recovering after she was put in a medically induced coma to save her life and now faces a tough future.

The youngster suffered three bleeds on her brain, a fractured skull and a fractured neck when the car she was travelling in collided with a wall in Pinewood, Ipswich, on September 22.

The teenager was not wearing a seatbelt when the collision happened and suffered injuries to her brain - the extent of which are not yet known.

Today her mum Joanne David said Dayle's behaviour, personality and memory could be affected by the nightmare accident.

Joanne, 34, said: "Dayle asked for the picture to go in the paper so people realise they should wear seatbelts.

"The passengers in the car were not wearing seatbelts and Dayle was on the side of the car that took the impact and hit the wall. I would definitely say to people now 'always wear a seat belt'.

"It could be the difference between life and death.

"She usually does wear one but I think perhaps she was showing off."

Dayle lost at least five pints of blood.

She was in a coma for nearly five days before doctors attempted to wake her on September 27.

But the pressure on her brain increased, her blood pressure dropped and doctors had to put her back into a coma before waking her again the next day.

Dayle's now beginning to recover but will have brain damage - the extent of which is not yet known.

Joanne, of Stoke Park, Ipswich, said: "Dayle's talking and eating now but she is not the same person she was before.

"We have seen little changes in her personality but we were told we won~t really see anything until she is home and out of the hospital environment.

"The part of her brain that has been affected is the personality, memory and behaviour.

"Her neurologist has said she will have depression, will probably have violent outbursts, mood swings and inappropriate behaviour and that type of thing."

Miss David said she believes her daughter's determined nature has helped her battle through and said the teenager has amazed doctors with the speed of her recovery.

Dayle has now taken a few steps and has been able to speak to her mum about the collision.

She's having problems with one of her eyes, but doctors do not yet know if they will to operate on it.

Dayle's friend Astra Tye, 17, was also injured in the collision and had to have a wound to her head stapled together.

The car driver, who was a friend's father, also suffered head injuries and needed hospital treatment but he was released the following day.

Joanne said she faced a nightmare two weeks after the crash as Dayle fought for life.

The teenager was travelling in a silver Ford Mondeo when it crashed through a wall at about 12.30am on September 22.

She had been picked up by a friend~s dad at Tesco in Copdock and was on her way home when the collision happened - her mum arrived on the scene just a few minutes later.

Joanne added: "My cousin was the first one there. He heard the crash because he was out walking his dog.

"I went down there and the emergency services were already there. I saw the car and got told Dayle was in it but all I saw was someone covered in blood. I rushed over and she was in and out of consciousness."

Dayle was carried to an ambulance by stretcher and her mum told her she loved her before the youngster was taken to Ipswich Hospital by ambulance.

She was later transferred to Addenbrooke's Hospital, Cambridge, after medical staff realised the true extent of her head injuries.

Joanne said: "I had to sit for hours at hospital before I could see her. When she was in theatre I was petrified but after that I didn't really accept it was her to be honest, until she was awake."

She saluted the medical staff who worked tirelessly to save her daughter's life.

As Dayle battled for survival at Addenbrooke~s paediatric intensive unit she had one-on-one and a wealth of support from medical staff.

The teenager has since had assistance from plastic surgeons, neurologists, nurses and doctors who have helped her make a steady recovery.

In a bid to thank the staff Dayle~s mum is now planning to take part in a bungee jump to raise cash for the paediatric intensive care unit.

She initially planned to shave her head to raise cash because Dayle had to have her head shaved for her brain operations but the teenager said this would be unfair.

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