Crash Scene Nurse Found Bloodied Son Lying On Road

A Swansea nurse who pulled over to help a hit and run victim found herself cradling her bloodied teenage son. Philippa Kelleher rode with the teenager in an ambulance to Morriston Hospital which she had left just minutes earlier when her shift ended.

The Olchfa comprehensive schoolboy was given an emergency brain scan and later underwent surgery to insert a plate in his shattered right knee and shin. Her shock has since turned to anger, directed at the driver who failed to stop after the collision.

“I would like to say to that person, if you have any shred of decency then please explain to my son why you drove off and left him for dead,” said Mrs Kelleher. “If you were to knock over a cat or a dog you would stop, wouldn’t you? This person knocked my son down, and for all they knew, they had killed him, but they just drove off. I just can’t say how angry that makes me.”

Her 17-year-old son, Chris (pictured with mum Philippa), had been riding his moped along Gower Road, Killay, when he was hit by a car near the Murco garage. Minutes later his mum came upon the scene as she headed for the family home in Gower Road, Upper Killay, after a long shift as a staff nurse at Morriston Hospital.

“I could see there had been an accident up ahead and as I drove past I could see a kid had come off his bike and no ambulance had yet arrived,” she said. “I thought if it was my child I would want people to stop and make sure he’s okay. I got there only to find it was my own son lying there. A man had put a car blanket over him and was trying to keep him calm.

“Chris was bleeding from the nose and mouth and telling us his knee hurt. I was kneeling there, holding his head while the man – who I will always be grateful to – was trying to keep his lower body still. I was in total shock but my training took over. Paramedics arrived and he was rushed to Morriston.”

An emergency scan showed he had suffered bruising and swelling of the brain. “He was left very confused and didn’t know anybody for a week,” she said. “He thought I was his sister. He wasn’t eating, hardly drinking and was very drowsy. It was an awful time. He had surgery to his damaged right leg and still needs a walking frame to get about, three weeks after the accident. He’s really frustrated at being housebound. We have been advised to limit the TV he watches and ensure he doesn’t over-stimulate his brain.”

Police have put out an appeal for information concerning a VW Golf which drove off following the February 12 smash.

Mrs Kelleher, her husband Mike, and 14-year-old daughter, Laura, say they hope people will come forward with details. She added “Whoever did this was prepared to drive off and leave him for dead.”