A man was left fighting for his life in a coma after a gin distillery blast left him engulfed in a fireball. Leigh Taylor, 45, was distilling a new spirit at the brewery where he worked when a container overpressurised and exploded, blowing the roof off the building.
The father of two was consumed by flames, suffering severe burns to his face, hands, and legs. He was rushed to hospital and spent five weeks in a coma. Three weeks after the accident, he died for eight minutes following a cardiac arrest but was resuscitated by medical staff.
Leigh, from the Lake District in Cumbria, underwent skin grafting from his back to his hands and legs. His airways took months to recover after inhaling fire, leaving his body weakened and vulnerable to chest infections and pneumonia.
Despite the agonising road to recovery, Leigh has now made a full recovery, describing his survival as a miracle. Two years on, he is raising funds for the Great North Air Ambulance and Newcastle Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, driven by a feeling that his survival must have been for a purpose.
Leigh, currently unable to work due to long-term illness, said: 'I was engulfed in a fireball. I remember being pulled out of the rubble, conscious, and I saw the skin on my hands was melted and hanging off.'
'I heard sirens and I could feel myself slipping away - like in this liminal space between life and death - then I woke up from my coma five weeks later. In recovery, the pain was unlike anything I have ever had in my life before.'
'I really struggled afterwards with the purpose of my survival. There was no logical reason for me to have survived. People say I am lucky to be alive - yes, there is an element of luck to me surviving, but would you really call what happened lucky? What it is, is a miracle.'
Leigh, employed at a brewery in Workington, Cumbria, had been testing new distilling equipment. On 13 May 2024, the container overpressurised and detonated while he stood directly beside it. He was propelled across the room in a fireball and airlifted to Royal Victoria Infirmary, Newcastle, where he was put into a coma.
He said: 'I was in pain but the shock took over more. The vision of my burnt hands had me screaming in shock, and I could smell it too. The skin was hanging off, like in horror films. As far as I was aware, it was game over for me.'
Three weeks into his coma, Leigh suffered a cardiac arrest and his heart stopped for eight minutes, requiring two doses of adrenaline to restart it. Surgeons performed initial skin grafts on his hands while he was in a coma, and his legs were grafted after he woke up using skin from his back and torso. He said: 'The pain on the donor sites was like nothing else. I will never forget it.'
He was discharged to recuperate at home, heavily bandaged, in July 2024, with regular nurse and hospital appointments. Thanks to the mask applied by the air ambulance crew, the skin on his face did not need grafting and healed well. He said: 'There was no damage to my vision, but at one stage it was thought I might have lost my sight.'
Leigh faced a lengthy journey learning to walk and move normally again, requiring a small surgery to correct contracture on one hand. Once physically recovered, he struggled with his mental health as he battled airway and breathing issues due to internal scarring, and still deals with ongoing complications.
Leigh wrestled with the notion of his purpose following his survival and was determined to make the most of his second chance. He began exercising as soon as he was able. He said: 'The nurses said I am not your average burns survivor, pushing the boundaries of my physical recovery.'
Once healed, he sold his car, handed his keys back to his landlady, and chose to ride the entire UK coastline on an e-trike with his dog, Taco, in a challenge called Paws and Pedal. Since setting off in July 2025 from the hospital in Newcastle where he was treated, he has completed around 2,000 miles around Scotland and Northern Ireland. He anticipates the remaining several thousand miles to take until the end of October. He stays in a different location every night, taken in by kind supporters via social media, and has raised over 11,000 pounds.
Reflecting on his experience, Leigh said: 'I am lucky to be alive, to have my sight and my face.' Anyone can sponsor Leigh at www.gofundme.com/f/paws-pedal.
