A Scotsman, who nearly died in last April’s horrific open-top double-decker bus crash that left two tourists dead, has vented his frustration over the complete silence by the Maltese authorities on investigations.
“I am very disappointed. Two people died and I had four members of my family who witnessed this gruesome accident. However, it seems this case has been forgotten,” Simon Morrison told the Times of Malta.
The 42-year-old from Aberdeen, a football coach at his local club Middlefield Wasps, spent four weeks in coma after suffering grievous head injuries when the hop-on hop-off bus hit in a tree in Żurrieq. A Spanish woman and a Belgian man sitting a few centimetres away from him died.
Read: Two dead, six critical, 44 others treated, as tourist bus hits tree in Żurrieq
Four months down the line, very little if any is known about the investigations and whether the police plan to press charges against anybody. The Times of Malta asked the police about the progress reached so far in the investigations but no replies were forthcoming by the time of writing.
While he considers himself lucky to be still alive and will be forever thankful to the Mater Dei Hospital staff where he underwent urgent surgery to treat a gaping head wound, Mr Morrison said life had never been the same since the ill-fated sightseeing tour.
I am very disappointed
“I am struggling with mobility problems and, at times, feel confused and dizzy as a result of the grievous head injury I suffered. I have to rely on my family even for simple things like shopping and have not been able to return to work,” he said.
Accompanied by four family members, Mr Morrison had only been in Malta for a few hours when he decided to take the hop-on hop-off tourist bus to get a first glimpse of the Maltese islands on their first day of their Easter holiday.
“The last thing I remember was looking at the hills then, all of a sudden, everything went suddenly blank. The next thing I recall was being surrounded by relatives at Aberdeen Royal Hospital,” he said.
After four weeks in an induced coma at Mater Dei, he was flown back to Scotland where his condition started improving.
As weeks rolled by, he became increasingly keen to learn what had exactly happened and whether somebody was to blame for this mishap. He said that, to date, he had been given very little information by the Maltese authorities.
“The only feedback I got so far was when I had personally enquired with the Maltese police force by e-mail on the latest developments and the reply I got was that investigations were still under way and that inquiries into such serious cases could not be rushed,” he added.
Regardless of the outcome of the investigation, Mr Morrison is adamant he will not be stepping on Maltese soil ever again. “While I hold no grudges against the people, I won’t be coming back to Malta following this traumatic experience,” he said.
Read: What caused the tourist bus to hit the Żurrieq tree?