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Brewery blast survivor reunited with doctor

Jonny Manning
BBC News, North East and Cumbria
GNAAS Leigh Taylor (left) and his black cocker spaniel-cross dog Taco stand beside Dr Patrick Duncan, who is wearing his GNAAS uniform. They are all standing on a helipad in front of a white, yellow and green air ambulance.GNAAS
Leigh Taylor and his dog Taco were in the brewery during the blast and have been reunited with GNAAS doctor Patrick Duncan

A man who was "convinced" he was dying after being caught in an explosion has been reunited with the doctor who helped to save his life.

Leigh Taylor spent nine weeks in hospital after he was engulfed in a fireball at work at Tractor Shed Brewing in Workington, Cumbria, in May 2024.

He was treated by Dr Patrick Duncan from the Great North Air Ambulance Service (GNAAS), who arrived at the scene within 15 minutes of being called.

"Patrick and the rest of the team at GNAAS were the first link in the chain that saved my life that day," the dad-of-two said.

Warning: This story contains some graphic images

Mr Taylor, 44, from Seaton, recalled the moments after the blast at the brewery and described the extensive injuries he suffered to his hands.

"I remember being blown across the room and looking at it in disbelief," he said.

"My ears were ringing, and smoke was billowing, and then I just crawled out of the rubble."

He said he remembered his hands were "red raw" and he was dragged out of the rubble by a colleague.

"I was convinced I was dying, and that's what I was expecting, to die, because the last thing I remember was them cutting the sleeve off my coat, and then I woke up five weeks later," he said.

GNAAS Mr Taylor standing in front of the GNAAS air ambulance. He is wearing a black coat. He has short brown hair and a short beard. His face has recovered from the burns he suffered in the blast.GNAAS
Mr Taylor has made a good recovery over the last 12 months but still has a lung injury

Mr Taylor, who was put in a medically induced coma, woke up in Newcastle's Royal Victoria Infirmary five weeks after the blast.

"The energy of the blast had lifted the roof off the building where Leigh had been working," Dr Duncan said.

"He had sustained extensive burn injuries, most worryingly affecting his airway and his ability to breathe."

But a year after the explosion, he said Mr Taylor "looks really well".

GNASS Mr Taylor lying in a hospital bed after the blast. The pictures on the left shows his face heavily burned and dark red. Skin can be seen peeling on his face. A number of tubes are running into his mouth. The picture on the right shows him recovering. His face is much better but he still has some burn marks. He is sat drinking through a strawGNASS
The dad-of-two underwent skin grafts after suffering 40% burns to his face, legs and hands. He spent nine weeks in hospital

Although Mr Taylor still suffers from a lung inhalation injury, he made a quick recovery and was able to return to his passion of fell walking just over a month after leaving hospital.

He also introduced the GNAAS team to his dog Taco, who was in the brewery at the time of the blast.

"She normally roamed around wherever I went, but that day for some reason I locked in her the office, so she wasn't by my side when it happened," he said.

"She's a lucky girl."

Mr Taylor praised the air ambulance service for its life-saving work and said the help he had received had given him "the best possible chance of survival".

He also thanked staff at the RVI for their "unbelievable" care.

"The incident has given me a new perspective on life and it's changed me as a person," he said.

"It's kind of forced me on this journey of self-reflection and healing."

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