Veteran to take on Arctic challenge for charity

Karl Hinett is preparing to trek across the Arctic in aid of SSAFA, the armed forces charity

A veteran who was badly injured while serving in Iraq is getting ready to trek more than 300 miles (500km) across part of the Arctic in aid of SSAFA, the armed forces charity.

Karl Hinett, from Tipton, suffered 37% burns and spent 10 days in an induced coma when his armored personnel carrier was hit by petrol bombs.

Twenty years on, Mr Hinett, who served with the Staffordshire regiment, will be taking part in the unsupported journey across the snow and ice of Swedish Lapland.

"What better way to commemorate an event as big as this by doing something even bigger and raising as much money as we could?" he said.

WARNING: This article contains a graphic image of the petrol bomb attack in Iraq.

In the years following his injuries, Mr Hinett, 38, took up marathon running and in 2018 won a silver medal in the 1500m at the Invictus Games.

But he said training for this challenge was proving to be "very different".

"A lot of the stuff I've done previously has been quite short, more intense workouts, trying to cover distance quickly," he said.

"We've got to be really conservative and be really conscious of how hard we push ourselves. So the best way to train really is lots of slow and steady days on the feet."

Mr Hinett won a silver medal at the Invictus Games

Project Fire and Ice will see Mr Hinett and three other veterans - including Jason Fox from TV's SAS: Who Dares Wins - drag sleds carrying all their supplies and equipment hundreds of miles across snow and ice-covered rivers, lakes and forests.

"I think this is where we're really going to rely on each other as a team," said Mr Hinett. "I've got injuries, especially to my hands, and the cold can make operating my hands quite difficult.

"We've all just got to be honest with each other and if anyone's suffering we're there to help each other."

Mr Hinett suffered 37% burns in the petrol bomb attack in Iraq (the soldier pictured is Mr Hinett's colleague, who suffered minor injuries)

Mr Hinett is hoping the challenge will help shine a spotlight on mental health in the military.

Of his recovery following the attack in Iraq, he said: "It was the physical aspect of it that was the challenge to start with, but as life progresses and time moves on, it was the mental side of it that needed looking after as well.

"I was very very close to losing my life and I just need to remind myself every now and again that I'm grateful to be here, grateful to be alive.

"And if I'm doing something positive, then I have a much better mental outlook."

Mr Hinett will set off on the expedition in March.