After a normal day chatting with the gardener and completing the company registration forms for Glisson Printers, a disaster later as Della was run over as she left the school bus in Gordon Road; but I was soon on the scene organising things after Debbie ran home screaming. Di called 999 for help, I supervised the site and got things organised for her trip to hospital with a broken thigh.
With Di and Debbie hysterical, I took them with me behind the ambulance and then brought Debbie home to rest. The head injury was the worry but fortunately tests revealed no concussion or pelvic damage with a calmer end to the day.
A better night's sleep and so much rested when awaking this morning. The girls off to school and then I settled down in my office to get some paperwork done. A chat with the gardener about doing some concreting today and then completed the forms for the company formation of Glisson Printers Limited. This took some time and then more still for the rest of my papers and correspondence. Lunch with Diana back from her shopping and then I treated myself to a little relaxation, watching the 3rd/4th team play-off in the Rugby Union World Cup between Scotland and New Zealand. Scotland played bravely but lost to the superior forward scrummaging power of the Kiwis. Even so, they played for and won their pride in an exciting match.
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Back to my office to finish off some more paperwork and to get the mail ready for sending off and I was at my photocopier when the trauma began. Debbie came running into the house screaming "Della had been run over; Help; Mum; She has been run over and its all my fault; Mum!!". I was up and to the back door in a few seconds to find Debbie and Di arriving at the same time. They were screaming at one another about what happened, but I knew that it must be on Gordon Road, opposite Willow Close, where the girls are dropped off and had to cross. I pointed to the hall phone and shouted the command to Di, "Dial 9-9-9, Ambulance", and when she hesitated wanting to run out. "Do it now!". With that, I bounded up Willow Close and was at the scene having arrived within a couple of minutes of the event.
Della was a sad sight, lying in the road; her hat, her briefcase and one shoe in a trail along the road. I think it was the bus driver leaning over her and I was pleased and relieved to see that she was conscious and aware of where she was. She had no recollection of what had happened and was just saying, "My leg, it hurts. Why does my leg hurt?". It was the growing bump on her right forehead that worried me and as I was tending her I was waiting and fearing any unconsciousness, sickness or other signs of concussion. Debbie arrived back and Debbie was hopping up and down on the pavement screaming "Della, Della. It was all my fault - I should have got out first and stopped her. She just skipped across the road. It was horrible; she went up on the car as it went along and then fell off of the bonnet!".
Diana arrived after her phone call and I asked her to go back and get a coat each and our shoes for when the ambulance arrived as I was just in slippers. I then spent my time between comforting Debbie and directing the traffic which kept coming along the road at speed. I slowed it down to walking pace by waving both hands up and down and let it through very slowly. The ambulance took some time and so we sent Debbie back inside for Della's night things and some cuddlies and then I went back for my coat and wallet etc and brought the Range Rover up to the end of Willow Close and put Debbie in there ready to follow the ambulance when it arrived.
The police were first on the scene and the driver of the police car was the father of one of Della's friends. Then the Magpas emergency car of Dr Morris arrived with the ambulance soon after and this while I went back to get the car. I was worried on my return when I found Dr Morris giving Della some tranquillising gas; thinking that it was oxygen and that she might have been going unconscious but it was just to deaden the pain whilst they straightened her broken right leg and put a modern splint roll on it to get her into the ambulance. Della did scream at this point and was in obvious agony. I moved on some bystanders who were watching this act because it would have been worrying for the children. Once she was aboard, Di joined her and I drove along behind in the Range Rover all the way to Hinchingbrooke Hospital.
I did my very best to reassure Debbie who was sobbing deeply and still worrying that it was her fault. I had decided that Debbie would have to come with us as it would have been even more traumatic to have been left in that state, having witnessed the accident and been so involved. The rush to Hinchingbrooke went well and, where necessary, I put on my hazard flashers and followed the ambulance round traffic. We took comfort from the fact that the ambulance was only showing its flashing lights and using no siren. It was also travelling steadily rather than rushing and that was telling me that Della was stable. We parked the car and ran down to the accident wing as Della was just being wheeled in and we went into the treatment room and took part in the process.
Still no sign of concussion and we were hoping that it was only the leg; but fearing that any time she would feel the head injury and that the examination would reveal spinal, pelvic or rib-cage damage. We stayed in casualty as the first of the X-rays was developed there. A simple fracture of her right fibia (the upper bone in her leg) and nothing wrong with her pelvis. Thank God. They were constantly checking her eye responses to a bright light because she was becoming dopy with the increased sedation and I was ensuring they did as this was my main worry. The consultant orthopaedic surgeon arrived with his houseman and determined that traction would be needed. Then a little wait for more detailed X-ray examination upstairs and the good news - No skull fracture or any other damage to the rest of her body apart from cuts, scrapes and bruises.
She would require traction for her leg and so she was taken upstairs to the Holly Childrens Ward to have this done. Then things started to get less well organised as the necessary equipment took too long to arrive and Della was left in pain for far too long with Diana by her side. As Della yelled, I took Debbie off to a nearby family room and comforted her there as she wept and moaned again. I kept coming back and seeing how they were getting on and it was an hour and a half (and a long time at that) before they had this traction set up and Della a bit comfortable.
During this time, I played snooker and table football with Debbie to comfort her and ease the shock and then, once I had taken her to see Della in a more rested and calm state, she was relieved and able to come away. I left Della in Di's care and drove Debbie home to get some rest. Debbie was better and managed to drop off but I had a fitful night; still worried about the possibilities of a head injury emerging from that blow to the head.