"I Faced Every Parent's Nightmare: Stranded on a Train Crossing, I Was Hit by a Train and Electrocuted, Resulting in a Leg Amputation"

WHEN Rissa Maxwell turned 37 on October 7 last year it was a happy day, full of celebration – she’d been at her partner’s house and was heading to her mum’s for more fun.

But as she walked over a level crossing – which had no lights, barriers or signals on the footpath – she was hit by an incoming train.

Rissa Maxwell was struck by a train as she walked over a level crossing and then narrowly missed another… but thankfully a dog walker found her and called 999Credit: Supplied Rissa was fighting for her life in an induced coma at Royal Sussex County HospitalCredit: Supplied Rissa was hit by a train after getting stuck on a pedestrian crossing. File picture.Credit: Alamy Stock Photo

She then narrowly missed another, and fell unconscious after being electrocuted by the live line.

Thankfully, Rissa was found by a dog walker, who called 999.

Doctors saved her life but her left leg was amputated and she spent three months in hospital.

Four months on from the accident, Rissa is still processing her new normal and recovering from her life-changing injuries.

Rissa, 37, from Crawley, West , says: “I should have been celebrating my birthday, but instead I was fighting for survival after being hit by a train.

“It was the most terrifying, traumatising day of my life. But now I feel stronger and have a new outlook on life and how important it is. There’s so much I took for granted before my accident, but I’m determined to change things for the better.”

Train hurtled towards her

On the morning of her birthday, Rissa’s boyfriend of two years, Ricky*, had sent a huge bouquet of flowers to her door as a surprise. She spent the day with him and then headed over to her mum’s.

Rissa recalls: “I vaguely remembered Ricky previously telling me not to walk that way at night without him. He was concerned about the level crossing, but it was the quickest route to Mum’s, and I thought I’d be fine. I had done that walk so many times before.”

As Rissa headed along the footpath, she opened the gate by the level crossing and walked across as normal, seeing no incoming trains.

But halfway across, Rissa’s phone slipped from her hands and as she reached down to grab it a train hurtled towards her.

She managed to jump out of the way, but her bag got caught on one of the carriages and she was dragged along.

Rissa says: “I panicked as I saw bones popping out of my leg and blood everywhere. I was in too much shock to feel the pain.”

I panicked as I saw bones popping out of my leg and blood everywhere, says RissaCredit: Supplied Rissa says she was ‘in too much shock to feel the pain’Credit: Supplied

When she was finally able to dislodge herself, she fell onto the track and saw another train coming the opposite direction. Powered by adrenaline, Rissa rolled over onto a live line. She says, ‘I screamed for help, praying someone could hear me. I thought I was going to die – then all went black.’”

Four days later, Rissa woke up from an induced coma in the ICU at Royal Sussex County Hospital.

Rissa says, ‘My parents, brother and close friends surrounded me with tired, tearful eyes. My mum, Maggie, said they weren’t sure I was going to make it. Flashes of what happened came to mind, but I couldn’t process it.’

Doctors informed Rissa that she’d had a blood clot in her lung and a brain bleed from being electrocuted, and metal plates were put in her injured arm. They also explained that they’d amputated her leg to save her life.

Rissa says: “I burst into tears, unable to accept what had happened. My injured arm was hard to use, and I had to relearn the simplest of tasks, like opening a jar or turning over my palm. I felt like Frankenstein’s monster as I examined the cuts and stitches all over me.”

But despite the battle still ahead of her, Rissa was determined to see the positives.

I felt like Frankenstein’s monster as I examined the cuts and stitches all over me.

She says: “I was alive, my hospital bed overlooked the sea, and I had visitors every day. Ricky brought me my favourite cheese and onion crisps and Minstrels, while Dad gave me Lucozade to keep my energy up.

“My friends spoilt me with make-up and skincare gifts too.”

Huge battle

Aided by the nurses, Rissa learnt how to walk with a frame and soon the mobility in her arm had returned.

On tough days, she turned to adult colouring books or listened to transcripts from self-help author Napolean Hill, which changed her frame of mind.

After three months in hospital, Rissa was offered wheelchair-accessible accommodation close to family, meaning she was able to be discharged on 12 January. But the morning she left, she found out her mum had been admitted to the same hospital.

Rissa pictured before the horrific accidentCredit: Supplied Family and friends were there to support Rissa during her three months in hospitalCredit: Supplied Rissa celebrating Halloween in hospitalCredit: Supplied

Rissa says: “I asked if I could see Mum, but I wasn’t allowed as she was in an infection-controlled zone. She’d been unwell with heart issues for a while but, like me, she was a tough cookie. She sent me a text to say she hoped my move went well and that she was doing as OK as she could be.”

While Rissa was making her new place a home, her mum got sicker and contracted pneumonia.

Rissa says: “My life should have been on the up, but we were losing Mum – my biggest support in my recovery. For hours, my brother and I held her hands and cried. Although she wasn’t conscious, I hoped that she knew we were there.”

Sadly, Rissa’s mum passed away that night. In her grief, Rissa cut herself off from everyone. She admits: “I was devastated and broke down. I’d been through so much. It was my family and friends who picked me back up, telling me they were there for me.”

That level crossing has had 11 near misses in the past year, and I often think about what could happen if someone – especially a child – wasn’t as lucky as me.

Rissa hopes to get a prosthetic leg fitted soon and intends to spend the next year recovering before focusing on her goals, which include working in to help fellow amputees and campaigning to make the level crossing safer.

She says: “That level crossing has had 11 near misses in the past year, and I often think about what could happen if someone – especially a child – wasn’t as lucky as me.

“I bent down to pick up my phone and it changed my life.

“I do sometimes forget I’m missing a leg, like when I go to take off my trainers or experience phantom pain, but I’m doing much better and feel stronger. My 37th birthday wasn’t the celebration I was expecting. But it’s not often you hear about someone getting hit by a train and surviving, so I take my blessings and focus on how precious life is.”