IPSWICH: A young man, who suffered serious injuries in a car crash, is today hoping people will support the charity that saved his life.

Naomi Gornall

IPSWICH: A young man, who suffered serious injuries in a car crash, is today hoping people will support the charity that saved his life.

Tom Lock, of Hatfield Road, Ipswich, knows he is lucky to be alive after a horrific car crash left him in a coma with head injuries.

Six years on Mr Lock believes he now finally has closure after making a film about his experience and the tremendous efforts of the East Anglian Air Ambulance.

He has put the film on video-sharing website You Tube and he hopes it will make people realise what a vital role the charity plays in saving people's lives.

Mr Lock, now 26, was driving to work along The Strand, near the Orwell Bridge, in his Mini, in March 2003 when the brakes appeared to fail, and as he swerved, his car collided with a seven-seater VW Sharan coming from the opposite direction.

Although Mr Lock cannot remember anything that happened after that, his worried family rushed to be by his side after he suffered a crushed pelvis, broken arm, brain injuries and a ruptured spleen.

A crew from the East Anglian Air Ambulance flew him to Addenbrooke's Hospital in Cambridge, where he spent two weeks on a life support machine. He was then transferred to Ipswich Hospital for a further eight weeks.

He said: “I had a ruptured spleen and if that is not treated quickly, you can bleed to death in half an hour. If I had gone to hospital by road ambulance, I might not have survived. I am so grateful to be alive. My outlook has completely changed. When I hear people moaning about the rain or something, I am just pleased I am around to see it.”

Mr Lock works at Call Connection in Ipswich at the moment but is hoping to eventually set up his own photography business.

He added: “I feel it is a bit of closure to do this video. It starts at the beginning and now I feel there is a definite end to it.

“I recently met one of the paramedics who helped me. I couldn't thank him enough.

“The East Anglian Air Ambulance does not get any money from the government - it relies on the goodwill of people and I think that is amazing.”

To find out how you can help the charity visit www.eaaa.org.uk or to watch the film visit www.eveningstar.co.uk.

Has someone saved your life? Tell us your experience. Write to Your Letters, Evening Star, 30 Lower Brook Street, Ipswich, IP4 1AN, or e-mail eveningstarletters@eveningstar.co.uk.

The East Anglian Air Ambulance has two helicopters - code-named Anglia One and Anglia Two.

The charity provides a seven-day service for the people of Suffolk, Norfolk, Bedfordshire, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough.

The helicopters' top speed is 150 knots (172mph).

The crew is made up of a pilot, two paramedics, or a doctor and a paramedic.

The service costs �3.6m a year to run,