A FARMER was left fighting for his life after a bale of hay fell on him from his tractor. Roy Burton, 78, suffered a crushed vertebra, broken ribs and a punctured lung in the incident.

‘I’d been cutting off weeds,’ said Mr Burton (pictured). ‘I had all I needed, so I bound the hay. I’d roped it on, and reversed to the door. Then the tractor just went mad and the bale went up in the air. I heard my back go. The pain was dreadful.’

His wife, Brenda, came running as soon as she heard Mr Burton screaming. I could hear him shouting,’ she said. ‘He had managed to get himself off the tractor, and onto the steering. I waited with him until the ambulance came all clanging.’

Mr Burton remained conscious throughout the experience, despite his injuries. ‘I actually heard one of the nurses say “we’ll have to get in quick or we’ll lose this one”,’ he said.

Mr Burton spent four days in ICU and a further three weeks in hospital.