Visitors were 'reason to keep going' - councillor

Councillor Tony Dale was given a 50-50 chance of surviving the crash

Hundreds of visitors gave a councillor a "reason to keep going", following a crash which left him with just a 50% chance of survival.

Tony Dale from Cotswold District Council was on a family holiday in Italy when the hire car he was travelling in was struck by a lorry near Padua.

Mr Dale was crushed in the back seat and suffered a collapsed lung, broken ribs, a severed carotid artery and severe spinal damage.

He has now returned to council a year after the crash in July 2024 and said "every single person" in his community helped in some way.

The car was struck from behind by the lorry and Mr Dale said: "The lorry's bumper smashed my neck. It was pretty traumatic."

He was airlifted to an Italian hospital before receiving treatment in Gloucester and then spending six months at the Salisbury Spinal Treatment Centre.

Mr Dale, who represents the Liberal Democrats, received more than 500 visitors during his recovery and said Horatio's Garden in Salisbury was hugely beneficial.

He said support from the community "gave me a reason to keep going."

The garden was built by the nationwide charity of the same name to support the mental and physical wellbeing of people with spinal injuries.

"Horatio's Garden was my escape," he said. "It gave me a sense of normality, beauty, and peace during some very difficult days."

Mr Dale, who says he is still recovering, received a standing ovation from colleagues when he returned to work in the council chamber.

"I'm 15 kilos lighter and rebuilding lost muscle with four days a week of neuro-physio," he said.

"But if you believe you can do it, one day you will."