‘MONEY will never replace limbs’ was the stark message from victims of the Alton Towers smash after the roller coaster owner was fined £5 million for health and safety breaches.
Barnsley couple Leah Washington, 19, and Joe Pugh, 20, were caught up in the The Smiler crash on June 2 last year when the carriage they were in collided with an empty, stationary cart on the track.
Leah and Joe were among those in the front row who bore the brunt of the collision - which the court was told was a force similar to that of a 90mph car crash - and had their legs crushed in the tangled steel.
Leah, then 17, had to have her left leg amputated and boyfriend Joe was left with smashed knees. Both had severe injuries to their hands and have undergone extensive rehabilitation.
Operator Merlin admitted health and safety breaches over the horrific crash at an earlier hearing and was handed the hefty fine at Stafford Crown Court on Tuesday.
Read more in this weeks Barnsley Chronicle
