British medic loses arm and leg in Ukraine strike

A British medic who mislaid his limb and limb successful a suspected drone onslaught portion volunteering successful Ukraine has told the BBC helium feels "lucky" contempt his injuries.

Eddy was portion of a squad evacuating radical from the front-line municipality of Pokrovsk erstwhile his van - which was intelligibly marked arsenic an evacuation conveyance - came nether onslaught portion helium was astatine the wheel.

The 28-year-old said helium could "remember everything" astir the onslaught connected 30 January, including 3 agleam flashes astir the van and realising his limb had been "shredded".

Speaking to the BBC, helium said: "My archetypal thought was, I request to support driving, we've been hit."

Eddy - whose surname the BBC is not reporting - said: "I deed the gas, the car wasn't going anywhere.

"I tried to enactment it successful gear, my near limb wasn't responding. I tried turning the instrumentality and I could consciousness my enarthrosis turning but I couldn't spot my limb turning connected the wheel.

"At that constituent I realised it was truly bad."

Eddy said helium was grateful for the enactment helium has received from friends, household and peers since the onslaught and has not go disgruntled oregon pessimistic contempt losing 2 limbs.

He added: "I'm affirmative to beryllium honest. I've got an astonishing enactment web astir me. It's my near arm, my near limb - I'm right-handed."

Asked whether helium has immoderate regrets, Eddy replied: "Nothing." He continued: "I've got household here, I've got a goddaughter.

"I person a beingness present and if that means it costs maine an limb and a limb to person that life, it is what it is."

He said his household person struggled to recognize wherefore helium chose to unpaid successful Ukraine but said his begetter is owed to question to the state adjacent week to sojourn him.

Eddy, who is primitively from Dorset, has been successful Ukraine for 2 and a fractional years, having antecedently worked arsenic a sailor connected superyachts.

He primitively planned to deploy with others from overseas who person supported Ukraine's defence against the full-scale penetration launched by Russia successful February 2022.

However, erstwhile the brutality of the warfare became clear, Eddy reconsidered his options and successful October 2022 helium drove to Ukraine and joined unpaid efforts to enactment Kyiv arsenic a combat medic.

When helium was injured, Eddy was moving with the assistance radical Base UA, whose tract coordinator helium credits with redeeming his life.

In a station connected Instagram, the foundation accused Russia of shelling humanitarian and civilian organisations successful Pokrovsk each day.

Over the past year, Russian forces person gradually expanded the magnitude of territory they power successful eastbound Ukraine.

While Ukraine mounted a astonishment counter-offensive into Russian territory past summer, its troops person conflict to incorporate advances successful the east.

Russian troops person continued to inch toward Pokrovsk, a mining municipality which lies astir 60km (37 miles) north-west of the determination superior Donetsk, and person targeted large highways and proviso routes during their advance.

The colony is considered a strategically important determination for some armies. Before the war, Pokrovsk and Myrnohrad had a combined pre-war colonisation of astir 100,000 but astir person present fled.