Update: Surgeons trying to save leg of Jersey jet skier

Wednesday 12 July 2017

A Jersey advocate who suffered severe leg injuries in a jet ski accident is to undergo his third operation in under a week in a bid to reconstruct the damaged limb.

Giles Corbin (45), a partner at law firm Mourant Ozannes, was airlifted for treatment at Southampton Hospital trauma unit on Sunday after a speedboat crashed into his side while he was a passenger on a jet ski in St Brelade’s Bay.

The collision left him with a shattered knee – injuries described by Police as, “…potentially life changing.”

In Mr Corbin’s first two operations, surgeons fought to remove material in his leg and curb infection. A third 12-hour operation is now scheduled for Thursday and Friday.

“The first priority is to stop infection from this catastrophic marine accident, and to conserve as much healthy tissue as possible. Only then can the orthopaedic team start trying to reconstruct a working leg and particularly the shattered knee,” Mr Corbin’s mother wrote in a Facebook post.

Pictured: Southampton Hospital, where Mr Corbin is being treated in the trauma unit. (Google Maps)

She added: “Giles is being so brave despite horrendous pain and growing realisation of what a long and painful road it is to recovery... The surgeon said today it is was an absolute miracle that the blood supply was not severed.”

In the aftermath of the horrific accident, the 36-year-old speedboat driver was arrested for reckless driving, and has since been released on bail pending further investigations by the Police and Harbour Authority.

Mrs Corbin-Wheeler claimed that the driver, “…never had the decency to stop and help”, warning, “…my son and his friend [the jet ski driver] could have been killed.”

Nonetheless, she extended her appreciation to those who assisted Mr Corbin in the wake of the crash: “We would all like to thank the anonymous boat owner and his children who DID come to help get them out of the water, and also Jonno of the Watersports in St Brelade’s Bay who helped carry Giles up the beach into the ambulance.”

She also thanked islanders for, “…supporting Giles with love” as he undergoes treatment.