Rider who lost leg tells passers-by: Show me how hurt I am

He knew he was in bad shape after his motorcycle collided with a car at the junction of Telok Kurau Road and East Coast Road on Tuesday.

But even as he lay on the ground bleeding, Mr Robert Fuchs, 39, wanted to know how badly injured he was.

He told those who had rushed to him to spell out his injuries.

They told him his left leg had been badly smashed. Some even took pictures of his injuries, reportedly at his request.

"I was in a confused state and felt pain everywhere. My ankle was smashed and the nerves and tendons in my left leg felt tangled," Mr Fuchs told The New Paper from his hospital bed.

Passers-by tried to comfort him and applied an ice pack and gave him water.

He said: "I was conscious after the impact. As I lay on the ground, I went into a spasm."

He was rushed to Changi General Hospital but his leg could not be saved.

His left leg was amputated from the knee down during a two-hour operation that started at 11pm.

He was then transferred to another hospital.

The maintenance manager at French global telecommunications equipment company Alcatel-Lucent was visibly upset and still coming to terms with his condition as he spoke with TNP.

He had been riding his Harley-Davidson motorcycle, on his way to Parkway Parade to pay his phone bills when the accident happened at about 6pm on Tuesday. The Singapore Civil Defence Force dispatched an ambulance to the scene.

Mr Fuchs was on Telok Kurau Road towards Marine Parade Road when the collision with the Jaguar, which came from his left on East Coast Road travelling towards Mountbatten Road, happened.

The car was driven by a male driver aged 62. His wife was also in the car, reported Chinese newspaper Shin Min Daily News.

They suffered minor injuries, including cuts on their hands, but did not go to the hospital. They stayed at the scene to assist with police investigations.

Mr Fuchs' wife was distraught when she received the call about the accident.

Mrs Cristina Fuchs, 36, said a passer-by had called her.

"I could not breathe when I heard the news," the housewife said. The couple have a nine-year-old daughter and do not intend to tell her yet.

"She cannot know yet. She is now at a sleepover with her friends," said Mrs Fuchs.

Mr Fuchs was an avid member of the Harley Owners' Club and had purchased his second-hand Harley-Davidson for $18,000.

The couple said the driver has yet to contact him but they are appealing for witnesses.

"All I want to do is to recover, and to do my best to do what I've been doing," he added.

This article was first published on June 12, 2014.
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