David

David Crawford – SCI Australia Ambassador

David Crawford has a message with obvious relevance to any workplace. David was severely injured when he fell from a partly constructed roof on a Sydney building site.

His story is all the more poignant because he had noticed what he believed to be problems with the structure which went uncorrected and then, later, brought about his accident.

David is now committed to spreading the word on workplace safety, delivering regular talks as an Ambassador for Spinal Cord Injuries Australia. David’s personal story begins with a warning – a warning that was ignored.

“A few days before the accident I had questioned the way the roof had been designed, saying that I thought there were issues - but I was told it would be fine”, David said.
“On the day of the accident I was walking across the rafters when one of them suddenly gave way and I fell about four metres to the ground. I was actually lucky not to have been killed because I fell right beside a row of exposed tree stumps which would have done terrible damage. As it was, the impact damaged the vertebrae in my neck at C6/C7 and I had to spend six weeks in traction before the area was fused and stabilised.”
David’s accident sparked a major review of building site safety which prompted new regulations covering scaffolding, harnesses and roof railings.

Before the accident David was looking forward to an energetic life as a qualified builder with a great many sporting interests including soccer, surfing, golf, and tennis. At the age of 27 he was also in a happy, long term personal relationship, engaged to be married. Unfortunately, the physical and emotional trauma of his accident created a lot of uncertainty about his future and the relationship didn’t survive. Realising the physical limitations of his wheelchair David finished a building supervisor’s course and also attained qualifications in drafting – but he encountered enormous difficulty in gaining any form of employment in the building industry. David was determined to maintain a positive attitude and so changed direction by joining with his brother to open a motor vehicle repair business which has gone from strength to strength.

“I was forced to make a lot of adjustments and that was only possible because of the enormous amount of support I got from my family, especially my parents”, he said.
“One positive aspect, if there is any, is that I now take nothing for granted. Every day is a new challenge and it’s a matter of every day striving to achieve something bigger and better”, David said.