Lorry driver put in coma and lucky to survive after crop sprayer crash

The wife of a Royal Mail lorry driver has spoken out about this injuries and how lucky he is to be alive following what she believes is a shocking court sentence for the farmer who nearly killed her husband. David Gotham was driving home after a night shift delivering parcels to depots in Cornwall when one of the spraying arms swung out from the Bateman crop sprayer and hit his lorry cabin. The crash happened near the former Chybucca junction on the A30 [1] near Truro [2] on August 25, 2023, and life for David and his wife Evie has never been the same since. "Considering what my husband went through," Evie said, "I think the sentence he received is shocking.

I got the impression that he was not that remorseful but David nearly died." David, now 50, was taken to Derriford hospital in Plymouth [3] that day following the 8.14am crash and was put into a medically induced coma for nearly three weeks. Evie knows the exact time of the collision - for it's when David's smartphone, detecting a crash, sent an emergency ping.

"When I went to the hospital," Evie added, "his right ribcage was up under his arm. One of his ribs was in his lungs. His liver was ruptured and his other lung was struggling and only working about 10 per cent of its capacity."

NHS [4] staff at Derriford managed to clean up David's lungs and when he contracted a viral lung infection, managed to engineer some bespoke antibiotics when the run-of-the mill ones failed. They saved his life. Sign up [5] to receive daily updates and breaking news alerts from CornwallLive straight to your inbox

The moment when the arm of the crop sprayer driven by Paul Harris from Penzance swung out into the cabin of the Royal Mail lorry being driven by David Gotham near the Chybucca junction on the A30 in Cornwall on August 2023 (Image: David Gotham)

However David, from Plymstock, has been left with life-long debilitating injuries as a result of the collision.

He was left blind in his right eye and suffered permanent nerve damage in one of his arms, meaning he is no longer able to drive lorries like he had done for the Royal Mail for 30 years. Instead David returned to work after six months of convalescence and now works in the office at the Royal Mail site in Roborough on the outskirts of Plymouth where he helps with the logistics side of things. "We are lucky that he is alive.

It was touch and go at Derriford," Evie said. "On two occasions, the doctors told me he may not make it through the night. It was pretty scary. He still suffers from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and had to go through counselling for the nightmares he kept having."

She added: "The Royal Mail have been so supportive. They have been phenomenal and so have the police officers who investigated the collision. I want to thank PC Chris Braddon from Camborne [6] police who has helped us so much through this.

He's been brilliant." Evie said David has had to relearn to eat, walk and go to the toilet by himself, yet for all he has suffered, the man who caused all that damage has been spared prison. Paul Harris, 69, of Germoe near Penzance [7], who was unscathed in the crash, pleaded guilty to causing serious injury by careless / inconsiderate driving when he appeared before Truro [8] Magistrates' Court [9] earlier this year.

On Friday (June 6) he was sentenced to a 12-month driving disqualification and was fined GBP480 and ordered to pay GBP85 in court costs and a victim surcharge of GBP192. Evie said that Harris pleaded with the magistrates not to send him to prison and received what she feels is a very lenient sentence. "In a sense David and I are glad that he pleaded guilty and it was dealt with quickly so David didn't have to go through it all again in court. We don't wish Mr Harris any harm, and justice has been served, but we wished he had received a bit more justice.

"Even if he doesn't feel bad about it or doesn't seem to show any remorse, he'll still live with this for the rest of his life. Unfortunately, so will David." Want the latest Cornwall breaking news and top stories first? Click here to join CornwallLive on WhatsAppand we'll send breaking news and top stories directly to your phone.

We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners.

If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like.

If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice [10][11]

References

^ A30 (www.cornwalllive.com)
^ Truro (www.cornwalllive.com)
^ Plymouth (www.cornwalllive.com)
^ NHS (www.cornwalllive.com)
^ Sign up (www.cornwalllive.com)
^ Camborne (www.cornwalllive.com)
^ Penzance (www.cornwalllive.com)
^ Truro (www.cornwalllive.com)
^ Court (www.cornwalllive.com)
^ Click here to join CornwallLive on WhatsApp (chat.whatsapp.com)
^ Privacy Notice (www.reachplc.com)