9 Nov 2026
One day in April 2025, at 8:30am, 21-year-old Jack was on his way to work. But by 9am that same morning, he had been struck by a train at Chancery Lane Station and was almost dead.
A person struck by a train is an immediate dispatch for London’s Air Ambulance, meaning we were on our way to Jack’s side shortly after the 999 call was made.
Other emergency services also attended the scene, including paramedics from LAS, London Fire Brigade (LFB) firefighters, officers from the British Transport Police (BTP) and the London Underground staff.
Jack was trapped under the carriage and it was obvious he had sustained severe injuries from the impact with the train. Therefore, our priority was to extricate him as safely and quickly as possible. Having established that the current had been turned off, we worked with LFB and the LAS Hazardous Area Response Team to get Jack out from underneath the train and onto the station platform.
Once on the platform we assessed Jack thoroughly and suspected he had sustained a traumatic brain injury, had collapsed and bruised lungs and a very high risk of internal bleeding. He also had a significant injury to his left calf. Jack’s blood pressure was also very low, as well as his oxygen saturation.
There on the platform, we started a blood transfusion and prepared to place Jack in an induced coma. Once this was done, the team made two incisions either side of Jack’s chest to help re-inflate his lungs, ensuring that he was maximally oxygenated (a thoracostomy). Jack was then taken to ground level and into a waiting road ambulance, in which he was taken to the nearest major trauma centre.
When Jack began to wake up in hospital, he was incredibly disorientated. “I didn’t know why I was there or what had happened,” Jack said.
“One minute you’re on your way to work, the next you’re under a train carriage on the Central Line, then you’re waking up in hospital.”
Jack remained in hospital for nearly four weeks, which included a period in the intensive care unit. After that he had multiple therapy sessions including physiotherapy, occupational therapy and psychology all to help him rebuild his strength and mobility, and to learn to live with a brain injury. Sadly, the injury to his brain from the incident is a permanent and life-altering injury.
“I am really lucky to have my family. My parents, my gran and grandad, my brothers and sisters. My girlfriend and her family,” said Jack, “they were all there for me. If it weren’t for them, getting me out of bed and making me walk, I wouldn’t be where I am today.”
With outpatient physiotherapy once he’d been discharged, Jack continued to work hard at recovery and adjust to his new life.
“No one was going to do it for me,” he said, “so I had to do it for myself. I forced myself to get through and keep going.”
Only one year later, Jack ran the London Marathon! Yes, the whole 26.2-mile London Marathon – an incredible achievement.
“On paper you’d think there was no way I would have been able to do it, 10 months before the race I couldn’t even walk. But I did it. It was the hardest thing I have ever done, but I did it.”
At the finish line, not only was there a huge accomplishment, family and friends and a well-deserved rest awaiting Jack, but Dr Matt Mak, who had helped save his life that day.
“Seeing Matt, the doctor who’d gotten me out from under the train, at the marathon finish line, was the most special moment of that day. It was amazing,” said Jack.
“When we attended to Jack at Chancery Lane,” said Dr Matt Mak, London’s Air Ambulance’s Consultant, “he was critically injured and our immediate focus was on getting him out from beneath the train and doing everything we could to give him the best possible chance. Seeing him cross the finish line at the London Marathon a year later was honestly extraordinary and a testament to his determination.
“As a doctor, you rarely get to share a moment like that with someone you’ve treated at the start of their journey so it was a real privilege to see how far Jack had come.”
After a phased return, Jack is now back at work full time, living his life, surrounded by family and friends.
“I have a very different perspective on life now – out of a bad situation the best has come from it. I used to doubt myself a lot, but now I know you can do anything you put your mind to.
“I ran the marathon to give back to London Air Ambulance Charity, as they’re the team that helped save my life. Their skill, speed and dedication made the difference during one of the most critical moments I’ve ever faced.
“By raising awareness and funds, I hope they can continue saving lives across London, just as they did for me.”