Forklift driver loses half his body in crushing accident

Young man who lost half his body during horrifying forklift accident speaks of recovery

Loren Schauers, 20, was crushed by a forklift in a horrifying accident in 2019 and documents his recovery journey on YouTube with his partner. However, the couple say that questions enquiring about their sex life are ‘disrespectful’.

A young man who lost half of his body during a terrifying construction accident has bravely spoken out about his recovery.

Loren Schauers, 20, lost his legs and right forearm during the accident in September 2019.

The former labourer from Montana, USA, was involved in a horrifying accident while working with a forklift on a bridge, The Mirror reports.

After traffic forced him to get too close to the edge, he fell a frightening 50ft and was crushed by the forklift, severing his forearm and compressing his lower body.

Medics then performed an emergency hemicorperectomy on him, meaning that everything below his waist was amputated in order to save his life.

But a month after the operation, healthcare professionals did not believe he would survive.

Having miraculously made a recovery, he now documents his new life on YouTube.

Loren shares his YouTube account with his devoted wife Sabia Reiche, 23, who has stayed by his side through all his health problems.

Due to Loren’s mobility issues, Sabia has to perform many day to day tasks for Loren including changing his colostomy bags and showering him.

But despite the life the two have carved out for each other, they say there is one question that still irks them: How do they have sex?

Loren’s operation led to the removal of his genitalia as his pelvis had been completely crushed.

He previously said that doctors had made efforts to save some of his sperm but decided it wasn’t ‘viable.’

Responding to the question of sex on a Q&A, Loren’s wife Sabia said the question was ‘disrespectful’.

She said: “A question we get repeatedly is how do we have sex and how do we become intimate.

“That is a very personal question that we are never going to answer or allude to as it’s very disrespectful.

“You wouldn’t ask a random couple on the street how they have sex and just because our life circumstances are different, it doesn’t give people the right to ask.”

The couple has been very open about the uncertainty of Loren’s life expectancy in the past.

Speaking on their YouTube channel, Sabia confessed that due to the severity of Loren’s surgery it was ‘touch and go’.

She said: “It’s touch and go, there’s no for sure. The average is about 11 years and the record-holder was 24 years. But none of them were in the same situation as Loren.

“If we go off of that we are hoping Loren has 40 plus years left with us.

“Because his case was so rare it’s hard to pinpoint.”

In a bid to make life easier in the meantime, the couple are appealing for donations to fund a new bionic arm for Loren.