Wife tells of husband's recovery from crash moments after buying lottery ticket

Every morning for three weeks, Sarah Rimmer would call the hospital where her husband was fighting for his life in the hope of being told the father-of-two had simply made it through the night.

Lewis was in an induced coma after being knocked down by a Range Rover in the car park of a Sainsbury's store in Bolton, Greater Manchester - just moments after he bought a lottery ticket.

The doting father was airlifted to the Royal Preston Hospital where his family were told he had just a 30% chance of pulling through.

Lewis spent weeks on life support and had more than 40 hours of surgery, including the amputation of his left foot.

"For three weeks, I couldn't hear his voice, tell him about the girls or ask him for advice," said Sarah, reflecting on how life had changed one year on.

"The girls couldn't understand why we couldn't Facetime daddy."

In the following three weeks, medics reduced the sedation and each day Sarah would hope to hear the words "settled overnight", indicating he had progressed and was comfortable.

"The next six weeks brought a whole new battle," she said.

"Waking up, piecing together what had happened, learning to eat and drink again and slowly seeing the tubes and machines disappear.

"The girls finally got to see their daddy and began to understand what had actually gone on."

On the day of the incident on 27 October 2025, Lewis had taken the afternoon off work to celebrate the birthday of his eldest daughter.

Driving straight from the car garage where he works, he met his wife and their two daughters at a cafe close to their Bolton home.

He was hit just minutes after buying the lottery ticket and waving goodbye to his family.

Lewis was left with a broken pelvis, fractures to both femurs, a compound fracture to his right shin and severe damage to his left foot, which could not be saved.

Six months after the crash, Lewis was finally able to go home.

Sarah said the family now faced "a completely different life" and "a long road to recovery" but were determined to stay positive.

"We're busy with appointments but it's all positive things moving forward," she said.

"It's just a new journey that we're doing now, navigating everything."

A 57-year-old man is due to stand trial in November after being charged with causing serious injury by dangerous driving.

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