On the day before his 20th birthday, Liam Edwards was driving to visit his girlfriend in Violet Town when a horrific crash changed his life for ever.
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On June 10, Shepparton local Liam shared his survival story at the Lifeblood Shepparton Donor Centre during National Blood Donor Week.
“I got about halfway through the back road and hit one of the potholes,” Liam said, while speaking to blood donors.
“Lost traction and basically ricocheted off the tree and rolled multiple times … I don’t know whether it was the rolling or the impact that caused my fingers to be amputated.”
Still conscious after the crash, he found himself trapped in the wreckage, bleeding heavily.
“I tried kicking in the front window,” he said.
“I could feel every heartbeat, blood was squirting out of my fingers. I just knew I had to get out.”
Liam stumbled from the vehicle and began circling it, adrenaline and instinct taking over.
Despite losing an alarming amount of blood, he ran towards a farmhouse 300 metres away. He was near the end of the driveway when a car approached.
“I just pointed at my hands, I didn’t even speak,” Liam said.
“The passenger passed out because of the mess I was in.”
Paramedics from Shepparton were the first emergency responders to arrive.
“They parked in front of me and I just watched their faces … and they were kind of worried,” Liam said.
“I thought, ‘If they’re worried, I’m in a bit of danger here.’”
As Liam lay on the roadside, medics administered a life-saving blood transfusion.
“They chucked a blood bag on me right there and without that, I wouldn’t be here,” he said.
“One of the paramedics told me afterwards that it was rare to carry blood with them; I wouldn’t have survived (otherwise).”
After being airlifted from Euroa to Melbourne’s The Alfred Hospital, he underwent multiple surgeries.
First to remove infection, then to attempt to save his damaged fingers.
Though some could not be salvaged, Liam retained most of his strength.
“I can still do 90 per cent of what I used to do. I’m back playing football and basketball. Your body just adapts.”
Now, Liam is sharing his story to encourage others to donate blood — especially as Australia sees its lowest donation levels since 2023.
While 57 per cent of the population is eligible, just over three per cent donate.
His words struck a deep chord with the audience.
Particularly, Glen Stenhouse, a long-time donor who has rolled up his sleeve more than 300 times.
“I started donating when I was 18,” Glen said.
“I just thought, ‘This is a great thing to do,’ and it’s continued. I’m fortunate enough that I can go every fortnight.”
But despite years of selfless giving, it wasn’t until he heard Liam speak that the full impact hit him.
“That’s the first time I’ve ever actually put a face to it,” Glen said.
“You sort of don’t really think about it — you just go in, donate, get a snack and head home.
“Listening to Liam was brilliant. It makes it all worthwhile. Incredibly inspiring.”
Even more powerful was a realisation that hit Glen mid-talk: his own daughter is alive thanks to blood product donations.
“My wife is Rh-negative and I’m Rh-positive. Every time she had a bleed during pregnancy, she had to get the Anti-D injection,” he said.
“I hadn’t even clicked until today that my daughter is healthy and happy because of donors.”
Anti-D injections are used to prevent potentially fatal complications such as haemolytic disease of the fetus and newborn, which can arise if an Rh-negative mother is carrying an Rh-positive baby. Without these injections, many pregnancies would be at serious risk.
“It’s been a real eye-opener coming here today,” Glen said.
Liam signed an application with Lifeblood to conclude the event.
“You can’t just take,” Liam said. “You’ve got to give sometimes.”
“Someone I’ll never meet saved my life. I want to help make sure others get that same chance.”