Girl, 10, hit by a car on way to school lucky to be alive after coma

‘We really didn’t know if she was coming out of it’: Girl, 10, hit by a car on way to school lucky to be alive after eight-hour operation and coma

• Holly Blakey, 10, remains in hospital after sustaining multiple injuries 
• She was hit by a car on her way to Newsham Primary School, Blyth
•  Holly underwent an eight-hour operation and was placed in an induced coma

A 10-year-old girl is lucky to be alive after being hit by a car on her way to school in Northumberland. 

Holly Blakey was struck by a vehicle on Newcastle Road, Blyth, while she was making her way to Newsham Primary School. She was rushed to Royal Victoria Infirmary (RVI) in Newcastle.

Her pelvis was shattered, her bladder was split in half and her lungs were bruised and filled with blood. She underwent an eight-hour operation and was placed in an induced coma.

Holly is now stable but remains in hospital. She had two metal bars attached to her pelvis to stabilise it and has been left with a scar across her stomach.

Holly Blakey, 10, was lucky to survive the collision which left her with multiple injuries

Natalya Page, who is step-mother to Holly’s older sister Kacey Leigh King, 16, said: ‘When she went into the surgery we really didn’t think she was coming out of it. The serious part is over but she’s still in a huge amount of pain.’

Holly’s mother Michelle McFarlane, who is also mother to Kacey, Lilly Blakey, 11, and AJ Wells, six, found out about the collision when a man knocked on her door to tell her.

Michelle McFarlane, 34, who had one of her legs amputated below the knee earlier this year, has spent the last few weeks by Holly’s side in hospital.

The collision occurred at around 8.15am on November 2 this year. Northumbria Police were made aware of the collision earlier this month.

A spokesperson for the force said: ‘Shortly before 8.15am on November 2, we received a report of a collision at the junction of Newcastle Road and Laverock Hall Road, Blyth, involving child pedestrian and a car.’

The spokesperson said emergency services attended and the girl was taken to hospital with a suspected fractured pelvis. 

They added: ‘The driver stopped at the scene and fully cooperated with police.’

Holly Blakey (pictured with her mother Michelle McFarlane) is being treated at Royal Victoria Infirmary in Newcastle

Natalya, 23, and Kacey’s dad Jason King, 35, are currently looking after Kacey and Lilly at their home in Newcastle and AJ is staying with his dad. 

Natalya said: ‘Holly was making her way to her friends house to knock on her to walk to school. On one of the big roads she was crossing she was hit by a car.

‘At the time no one was around her. People gathered but they didn’t know her name or anything. It was just this little girl in the middle of the road. I believe someone called the paramedic and somebody called the school.’

Natalya said Holly’s school badge was visible, which enabled those helping her to get in touch with the school. She said a man knocked on Michelle’s door to let her know about the incident and when she arrived there were teachers at the scene.

Holly Blakey pictured with her brother AJ (centre) and her sister Lilly (right)

She said: ‘Holly got taken to the RVI. Holly’s pelvis was shattered in three places and bits of the pelvis that came away punctured her intestines. They thought that her bladder had a little tear in it. In surgery, they found out the bladder had completely split in half.

‘Her X-ray showed that her lungs were bruised and there was a shadow on one of the lungs. She was bleeding internally and that needed to be fixed.

‘We really didn’t think she would come out of the surgery and I can’t explain how that felt. When she came out of surgery it was on to the next problem.’

Holly underwent surgery and was placed in a induced coma. Natalya said: ‘They assumed her lungs wouldn’t be able to function. She was like that for a day or two then they tried to take her off it. When they tried to take her off sedation she lasted 20 minutes and started coughing blood up.’

Happier times: Holly Blakey pictured smiling with older sister Kacey Leigh King, 16

Natalya said medics were able to get the blood out of Holly’s lungs and a day later she was able to breath on her own. She said: ‘She’s been doing better, she’s on the road to recovery.

‘Now she’s got two metal bars hanging out of her pelvis which cross on the middle to stabilise her pelvis. She’s got quite a big scar. She’s going to be scarred for life, it’s not going to go away.’

Natalya, who works as an administrator, took Kacey and Lilly into hospital to see their sister following the collision. 

She said: ‘I had to put a brave face on for them. I just stood over Holly’s bed and all I could say was ‘She’s just too small for this bed’.

‘She was just too small for the bed and it didn’t look right. I had to explain what every tube was to her sister, it was awful.’

Natalya Page (left) is raising money for Holly’s family – pictured with Holly’s older sister Kacey Leigh King

Natalya said that Holly can talk and has been trying to walk with the help of a physio. Her family does not yet know how long Holly will remain in hospital and if she may be able to come home for Christmas.

Natalya said: ‘You start to notice when the medication is wearing off and you can tell she’s in a lot of pain. She’s in so much pain that trying to walk is so difficult for her.’

Natalya wants to help Michelle to give the four children the best possible Christmas. She said the mother-of-four is unable to work after having her leg amputated and has spent a lot money travelling back and forward to the hospital.

Earlier this week, she set up a Go Fund Me page and has already managed to raise £370.

Natalya said: ‘I feel really sad, I just want the kids to have a good Christmas. I want to bring Christmas to them and I don’t want Michelle to have the stress.

‘Michelle got her leg amputated just below the knee in January. She had lots of issues with her foot and she had to have her leg taken off or it would have turned to sepsis. Michelle has not long got her prosthetic and she can’t walk very far. It’s a big struggle with her being in Blyth.

‘I know the worst of it is over for Holly and that’s a big relief – that was really, really scary. Now my main focus is this so they have the best Christmas possible.’

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