Michael Bonfield wasn't expected to survive after a serious motorcycle accident last year, but after an eight month hospital stay he reunited with the paramedics that saved his life.
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On May 27, 2023 Mr Bonfield was enjoying a regular ride on his beloved motorcycle at Hartley in NSW's central west when he was t-boned by a car.
Mr Bonfield sustained critical injuries as a result, but due to the quick action of paramedics, he survived.
"To this day, I can't remember what happened in the weeks leading up to the accident," Mr Bonfield said.
Off-duty Paramedic Ron Gavin was mowing the lawn of his home in Hartley, when his wife came running down the paddock with his phone.
"My wife bundled me off in a uniform of some description and off to help Mark," Mr Gavin said.
"When I received the phone call, the operator told me it sounded quite serious and they called me off-duty quick," Mr Gavin said.
Mr Gavin arrived to the scene three minutes later and began assisting Mr Bonfield, who despite the precariousness of his situation was still conscious.
"He was able to mumble a few words, but quickly I realised his level of consciousness was poor. He had poor cerebral perfusion and a head injury," Mr Gavin said.
"My job was to get the helmet off, get some oxygen going into him and get some basic observations until the Paramedics arrived with more hands to carry out the next level of skills."
According to Mr Gavin, it was a massive team effort to keep Mr Bonfield alive until he arrived at Westmead Hospital.
"We had the helicopter crew, we had the Police go and get extra blood from Lithgow Hospital, We had Fire and Rescue that had a Nurse, we had our own paramedics there," he said.
"The moons lined up for Mark that day. There was a huge response, it was well-coordinated and I think he survived because of it."
Mr Gavin said when his team received word of Mr Bonfield's miraculous survival, they couldn't quite believe it.
"Quite frankly, we were amazed. We got follow up that he arrived at the Hospital alive, which surprised us," He said
"To hear 24 hours later and then a couple of days later that he was still going was amazing."
It has been a long journey of recovery for Mr Bonfield, who had to learn how to walk again during his eight month hospital stay.
"The first part in trauma at Westmead was stressful for me, but the nurses kept me in good state because they're just beautiful people. I picked on the doctors a little bit on for fun," Mr Bonfield said.
"Then when I got moved to Minchinbury at the rehab hospital. I felt so comfortable and at home there."
Mr Bonfield is confident that he will continue to make a full recovery and lead a fulfilling life.
"There's no slowing me down. This walker is only temporary, and I've made that clear to everybody," he said.
"I will get there. So I'll just be a regular Joe walking down the street."
"I want to do a bit more traveling, my wife and I've done a fair bit of traveling in the past. And I want to get back into that."
On Wednesday, March 20 Mr Bonfield reunited with Mr Gavin and the team of paramedics at Lithgow ambulance station to thank them for saving his life.
"I wanted to let them know that there are people out there that are proud of them," Mr Bonfield said.
Mr Gavin said it was wonderful to reunite with Mr Bonfield and see the leaps and bounds he has come since the crash.
"It touches on the heart strings a bit. It's a great story," he said.
"To be able to see someone walking and talking and living what is a reasonably well life is a big bonus."
Reidun Berntsen
Reidun is a Journalist and writer who lives in a country town 3 hours from Sydney, Australia. From a young age, Reidun has been in love with words and the infinite possibilities they bring. Stories, features and poems have been a major part of her writing career.
Reidun is a Journalist and writer who lives in a country town 3 hours from Sydney, Australia. From a young age, Reidun has been in love with words and the infinite possibilities they bring. Stories, features and poems have been a major part of her writing career.
