April 28, 2009
Major Phil Packer’s Injury!
On 19 February 2008, Major Phil Packer’s life took a nightmarish turn. In an attempt to take cover from a rocket attack at Basra, Iraq, he jumped out of his vehicle. To his horror, he found the front and rear wheels of the vehicle roll over him, crushing his spinal cord and causing life-threatening injuries to his heart and ribs. The incident left him a paraplegic; he lost motor function in his lower limbs for sometime. Initially declared a ‘motor complete injury’, Phil had almost given in to the fact that he may never be able to walk again. Until he started showing signs of improvement! As much as the marathon is about raising funds for charity, it is a personal battle for Phil…a battle against his injury and an effort to regain normal life.
