An investment banker on a dream trip to South America had to have his ‘dead’ leg amputated after a horrific motorcycle accident.
Luke Tarrant quit his job in investment banking last September to make the trip of a lifetime: from the US to Antarctica.
The 28-year-old said he knew riding a motorcycle could be dangerous and felt that “sooner or later something was going to happen”.
He said: ‘I’ve always had a passion for motorcycles and this was the dream trip I’d been planning for a while. I quit my job for it and had a great time.’
He had been on the road for eight months when, on May 30, he had a life-changing accident while cycling in Colombia.
Luke Tarrant could not remember his motorcycle accident, but he was seriously injured
In addition to losing his leg, Luke also broke his tibia, collarbone and right hand
Luke had embarked on the journey of a lifetime, motoring from the US to Antarctica
Luke, from Bedford, has no memory of the crash and is still trying to piece together the events.
After waking up in a ditch along the road, he was picked up by a stranger and rushed to hospital for treatment.
There the doctors told him that he had broken his tibia, collarbone and right hand, and that his left leg was ‘dead’ and would have to be amputated.
Luke said: ‘I was in Colombia and was on my way back to Ecuador when the accident happened.
“I can’t remember anything. I remember waking up in a ditch and I have a brief memory of someone holding me. It’s like trying to remember a bad dream — just little fragments of memories.
“My bike was clearly destroyed. It could have been a slippery road surface, but police said they saw no signs of another vehicle being involved. They don’t know exactly what happened.
‘They told me almost immediately in the hospital that I was going to lose my leg. I was told that it couldn’t be saved and that it was already dead.
Luke had been cycling for nine months before he had an accident
He admits he knew riding a motorcycle was dangerous and believed that ‘something would happen eventually’
Luke quit his job in investment banking to pursue his dream trip
“I was just in survival mode when they told me. I felt pretty rational about it. After I came out of the surgery, I felt fine. I was at peace with it almost immediately, it was very bizarre.”
After the surgery, Luke’s health deteriorated. He developed sepsis, blood clots and fluid in his lungs. He had to be put on a ventilator.
He was transferred to intensive care for sepsis following his amputation and was subsequently placed on a ventilator after his lungs began to fill with fluid and blood clots.
Luke said: ‘At that point I realised this was the danger zone. The sepsis was much worse than the amputation – it nearly killed me.
“I think I was in intensive care for about a week. As the sepsis got better, they focused on taking care of the amputated leg.”
Luke underwent eight surgeries on his left leg within a two-week period. During this time, Luke’s family began documenting his recovery on Instagram to update loved ones on his condition, which garnered over 100,000 followers.
Luke is now learning to live with one leg and hopes his story will inspire others
Luke has started a fundraiser to help pay for private physiotherapy
Fortunately he recovered and after a month in the Colombian hospital he was flown back to the UK where he stayed in an amputation centre to help him get used to life with one leg.
He said: ‘I always knew that with a risky activity like motorcycling, at some point something was going to happen.
“I learned to live with it very early on. I’m not going to grow my leg anymore, so I might as well keep going.”
Since the crash, Luke has been determined to use his story as a force for good, documenting his amputation on social media to help others.
He said: ‘It started with me updating my friends. And then when I started using my phone again, I kept updating people and slowly it started to become something else.
“People messaged me saying they saw my story and it motivated them. I’m starting to look at it a little differently now than I did before. I hope it can be used as a force for good.”
A fundraising campaign has now been launched to help cover the cost of private physiotherapy for Luke and any prosthetics he may need, with £55,000 in donations raised so far.
Luke said: ‘I am incredibly grateful for all the support. I have had messages from people from all walks of life. It has taught me that no matter what happens to me in life, I know I can handle it. The generosity of other people has made me want to give back.’