Mario Xuereb’s dramatic brush with death during an off-roading competition in Wales, which saw his four-wheel drive catapulting through the air and rolling over four times, will be featured tonight in a documentary on ITV Wales.

The accident, which happened on August 10, 2013, left the veteran driver and firefighter with a spinal cord injury – although he has since made great steps towards recovery.

The 45-year-old was taking part in King of the Valleys, a 130-kilometre road race held over three days in Wales.

This race is deemed the toughest off-road race in the UK. Involving very rough rocky terrain, mud bogs, tight forest lanes, steep climbs and descents, and fast sections in gravel roads, the event offers varied obstacles necessitating specially built vehicles and good team preparation.

The race is only open to 50 vehicles, which must either be invited or must qualify to gain the chance to compete.

Mr Xuereb and his co-driver, Maurice Farrugia, had already taken part in the first edition in 2012, when they finished in fifth place.

Last year, Mr Xuereb was at the wheel of the vehicle which he had constructed himself, driving at some 80 kilometres per hour, when the 4x4 buggy suffered a mechanical failure.

The suspension snapped and a hump sent the vehicle flying more than 25 metres, landing on the front bumper and resulting in a forward roll.

While Mr Farrugia was not injured, Mr Xuereb broke his spine and spent one hour trapped inside the vehicle. “I was in excruciating pain and unable to move,” Mr Xuereb recalled, speaking to Times of Malta.

“As a firefighter, I immediately realised that I had suffered a spinal cord injury. And I was conscious throughout, which made things worse in a way because I knew exactly what was happening.”

Paramedics and the fire brigade went on site and managed to carefully lift Mr Xuereb through the broken windscreen.

Thanks to the Wales Air Ambulance, a charity-funded service, Mr Xuereb was airlifted to the nearest hospital, where he was operated on.

Meanwhile, the entire rescue operation was being filmed. As a result, the footage and an interview with Mr Xuereb will appear in Helimeds, a TV documentary series looking at the lifesaving work of the Wales Air Ambulance.

“Thanks to the helicopter service, I was at the hospital in 15 minutes flat. It would have taken me an hour in a normal ambulance – the place was cut off and the track was very bumpy, which would have caused me severe damage in the state I was in.

“Moving me could have meant slicing my nerves, which would have lead to irreversible damage.”

Mr Xuereb spent 12 days in hospital and slowly recovered afterwards.

Nowadays, he does clerical work within the Civil Protection Department. He can walk but cannot run or perform certain strenuous movements.

He expressed his gratitude to the two marshals who patiently held his head and feet until the paramedics arrived, his Maltese team, Welsh friends and family.