Martin Hibbert: bomb survivor from Chorley treats paramedic who saved his life to a day out at Wembley Stadium

Martin Hibbert, who lives in Heath Charnock, was paralysed from the waist down when he and his teenage daughter were among the hundreds injured in the terror attack at an Ariana Grande concert on May 22, 2017. He had injuries across his body which were so bad they were compared to those seen in a war zone and army medics were called in to tell the surgeons how to put him back together.

One of the paramedics who helped save Martin’s life was Paul Harvey. Martin credits Paul with being here today because the paramedic made a crucial decision to take him to Salford Royal Hospital, which has a major trauma unit, and to administer a blood clotting agent to prevent him bleeding to death. He said that, had Paul followed instructions and taken him to Wythenshawe Hospital, he would have died.

The pair have cemented a friendship ever since and Martin decided to treat Paul to a day out at Wembley to watch their beloved United. Martin, 46, a life-long Red and an Old Trafford season ticket holder, was at Wembley on Sunday when United beat Brighton on penalties in the FA Cup semi-final, and Paul was his guest.

Shortly after the penalty shoot-out victory, Martin tweeted a picture of the two friends at the match saying “Promised @peejayharvee I’d take him to an FA Cup Final if we ever got there and today I hold true on my promise. Everyone close to me knows Paul, as he’s the paramedic that saved my life on the night of the Arena terrorist attack. Thank you @ManUtd for not letting me down!!! See you back here on the 3rd June”.

Since the terror attack, which claimed the lives of 22 people – the youngest being eight-year-old Saffie-Rose Roussos from Leyland, Martin has become vice president of the Spinal Injuries Association, climbed Mount Kilimanjaro and has so far raised £910,000 for the charity, close to the £1m target. He has also been presented with a Pride of Britain Regional Fundraiser Award for all his unrelenting efforts.