An Oldham man who came close to death in a horror crash has spoken about the terrifying ordeal and his fears for the future after being left without a job to return to.

Maciej Maik was driving down Oldham Road in Ashton last month when he was flung off his motorbike in a crash with a car.

Maciej, of Holts Estate Oldham, had been babysitting for his sister and was heading to a mechanics after a warning light came up on his motorbike which he had bought just three weeks before.

“I never made it there”, the 22-year-old said.

Maciej shattered his wrist, his left ankle, and his left knee. He also suffered a spine fracture in the crash just after 5.30pm on July 19.

“I flew bout 25 meters down the road and hit the ground with quite a bit of force. I remember everything, I was so wired with adrenaline,” Maciej explained.

He was taken to Manchester Royal Infirmary and then transferred to Salford Royal Hospital a week later where he remains to this day.

So far, Maciej has undergone six operations and is now in rehabilitation. He is still unable to walk and in “constant” pain.

On his recovery, Maciej said: “I’m hoping to be released before Christmas, but it depends how long it will take me to regain my mobility. I need to make sure I’m somewhat independent before I go home.

“It could be a couple of months; it could be a year. I’m never going to get back what I used to have. The surgeon has said I’m going to get back a maximum of 70 per cent of what I used to have.”

Maciej moved from Poland to Oldham with his family in 2006 and went to school at Newman RC College. After leaving school he started working as a baker, a profession he left for a short time and then returned to.

The 22-year-old said he has now lost his job as a baker due to the crash and will never again work in manual labour.

“I’m not able to do manual labour anymore and all the jobs I used to do, and all the qualifications I have, are for manual labour only.

“I’m going to have to go back into education. I’m not very happy because I liked manual labour, I like physical work. I hate sitting behind a desk and now I’m going to be forced to if I’m going to earn any kind of income.

“I don’t want to be on benefits or anything like that. I’ve always worked,” he said.

Maciej said he is however concerned about money while he recovers and that his sister has had to apply for Universal Credit on his behalf as he is still unable to type.

“My family have been bending over backwards to provide me with anything I might need and have been trying to visit me as much as possible but obviously they work so it’s not always doable.

“They have been extremely helpful. Without them I think I would have broken down,” he said.

On the day of the crash, Maciej’s siblings arrived at the scene within minutes of receiving a call from paramedics at the scene.

When asked whether he will be able to ride his motorbike again, Maciej said: “Never, not a chance.

“I am utterly terrified. PTSD (post-traumatic stress disorder) is a real thing. When I sleep, I always dream about the impact of the crash itself and I will be startled awake.”

Maciej said riding his motorbike had been his “get away from reality” and that he had only started riding a couple of months before the crash.

“It made me happy; it gave me that freedom and now I am completely unable to do anything on my own. I’m just about able to feed myself.

“Life is short, enjoy the time you have. One day something could happen and change everything.

“I wasn’t a biker for a long time but the time I spent on the bike I enjoyed. I loved it and I would do it again,” he said.

Maciej added that he will forever be indebted to the emergency and NHS staff that treated him following the crash.

“They did everything in their power to put me back together and they did a great job because I’m alive and I’m going to walk again,” he said.

Maciej said he has not been contacted by the driver of the car involved in the crash but that witnesses at the scene, including his siblings, told him the driver was a woman in her twenties. 

Following the crash, a spokesperson for Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) said: “Just after 5.30pm on Wednesday 19 July, firefighters attended a road traffic collision involving one car and one motorbike on Wellington Street, Ashton-Under-Lyne.

“One fire engine from Ashton Fire Station quickly attended the scene, where there were reports of petrol on the road. Firefighters made sure the vehicles and the scene were safe and left after less than an hour.

“One male was assessed by paramedics from North-West Ambulance Service at the scene and a female was taken to hospital with multiple injuries.”

Greater Manchester Police has been contacted for comment.