Couple who both had left legs amputated after motorcycle accident with drunk driver learned to walk again together

A couple who both had their left legs amputated after being in a near-fatal motorcycle accident involving a drunk driver have learned to walk again and forgiven the driver, and said having each other for “comfort and support” made all the difference.

Chris and Denise Arthey, both 69, who now live in Godalming but moved to Texas in 2007, were hit head on by a drunk driver who was on the wrong side of the road while they were living overseas.

Chris, a now retired engineer and project manager, and Denise, a retired teacher, were left with broken arms, hands and concussion. Denise had to have her left leg amputated above the knee, and Chris was put into a medically induced coma and later had his left leg amputated above the knee.

The parents of three and now grandparents of two underwent physiotherapy daily for hours, with Chris needing to re-learn basic tasks due to his brain damage, and a few months later, they were fitted with prosthetic legs and started learning to walk again.

After the case went to court, and the drunk driver was sentenced to time in jail, Denise and Chris said they “didn’t feel any bitterness” and have even met the driver for dinner, including visiting them in prison.

Since then, Chris has been able to put his energy into recovery, and in 2012 ran his first marathon as an amputee, something he did regularly before the accident, and has gone on to participate in triathlons and a half Iron Man, and climbed Kilimanjaro and to the base camp of Everest.

Chris told PA Real Life: “We both had some pretty bleak days but it didn’t matter how bad things were for me, even if I was having a really rough day, there was somebody right there who understood exactly what I was going through, and was able to provide comfort and support.”

At the end of 2007, the pair moved to Houston, Texas, from Godalming, and seven months later came the near-fatal accident.

Chris and Denise, aged 53 at the time, were riding a Harley Davidson Road King on Highway 35 towards Corpus Christi when everything turned black.

Although the pair cannot remember what happened next, according to the police report, a truck, overtaking them, swerved to avoid an oncoming vehicle driving on the wrong side of the road which then crashed into them at 80mph.

Chris explained: “They reckoned between me seeing the vehicle and the head-on collision was 0.4 seconds.

“There was another truck next in line behind us, a driver with his wife on board, and they saw this explosion of motorcycle parts, two bodies flying through the air like rag dolls… the police reported that the driver that hit us was three times (over) the drink-drive limit.”

Denise’s left leg was immediately amputated above the knee on arrival in hospital, while Chris, in a medically induced coma for around two weeks, had a ruptured spleen, punctured lung, broken ribs and brain damage, with Denise eventually authorising the amputation of his leg above the knee as doctors claimed it was “killing him”.

Chris said: “It took several days for me to really resurface properly and by the time I was properly conscious, I knew that I’d lost the leg, I knew it was a result of a motorcycle accident and I knew that Denise had also had her leg amputated.”

When Chris woke up, because of his brain damage, he could not read a clock, use a phone or even do children’s puzzles.

“What I found particularly frightening was that all the things that I felt defined me were taken away,” he explained.

“While I’d always prided myself on holding my own with all these engineers and project managers, now I couldn’t do the simplest thing – I could barely feed myself, and I always thought I was safe and competent, and even though the accident wasn’t my fault, I felt like I lost that side of me.

“I think I turned a corner when I was telling myself that my value as a human being doesn’t come from what I can achieve, it comes from who I am, and even if you take all that stuff away, I’m still a valuable person and loved.”

After being in hospital for two and a half months in total, Denise and Chris went home, and four months after the accident, got their first prosthetic legs and began to learn how to walk again.

Denise said: “We were so excited but it was very painful to put it on and you can’t keep it on all day.

“I used to walk like a toddler with my arms out because I was scared of falling, it was a long process – it took nine months of outpatient and inpatient therapy, and another year of chiropractic therapy.”

Around a year after the accident, the case went to court, and the man who was driving on the wrong side of the road was sentenced.

Chris said: “We’re still in touch with the guy that hit us – after the court case was over, he asked the judge if he could come and speak to us and he was devastated by what he’d done.

“We honestly didn’t feel any bitterness, so we said, ‘We forgive you’, and we visited him in prison then exchanged emails every few months and had a meal with him before we left Texas… and more recently on a US visit.”

Over time Chris found it difficult adjusting to life without much exercise, as he had previously taken part in several marathons and felt like they were a “big part of what defined (him)”.

Around a year and a half after the accident, he had a meeting with a prosthetist who worked with several para athletes, and was able to create a running prosthetic and encouraged him to train.

Chris said: “He got me running one afternoon and he said, ‘You’re the second person in my career who’s an above-the-knee amputee and has gone from walking to running as quickly as that.

“So I thought, I’ll take that!”

By 2012, Chris participated in his first marathon since becoming an amputee.

He said: “It was just brilliant, I mean, it was really, really hard work and there’s always the relief of reaching the finish line, but just the feeling of finishing a full marathon with an above-the-knee amputation.”

Since then, and after moving back to the UK in 2015, he has taken part in triathlons, a half Iron Man and a marathon, as well as climbing Kilimanjaro with his son and climbing to Everest’s base camp.

On June 1, Chris will take part in his fifth Blenheim Palace Triathlon.

He said: “I’m training about seven hours a week at the moment so that’s quite a commitment… most of the time, I’m not thinking about being an amputee, I’m just enjoying the running.

“When I’m at Blenheim, I’m on the bike, or when I’m swimming or when I’m running, it’s just me, my heart rate, the clock and the competitor in front.

“I just love it, I wouldn’t say it’s as good as it used to be, but it’s pretty close.”

Looking back on their experiences, Chris said: “All we can say is that life now and the things we do, it’s just astonishing, really.

“It’s been a series of miracles.”

The 20th edition of the Blenheim Palace Triathlon takes place on June 1-2, with limited places remaining. Find out more at: blenheimtriathlon.com.

Denise and Chris have written a book, Highway 35, about their experiences, and provide inspirational talks. For more information visit: chrisarthey.co.uk.