Caution when using bungie ties

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Steve&Julie
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Caution when using bungie ties

Post by Steve&Julie »

Steve was packing our flatpack kitchen into the van on Thursday ready to drive over and install it when a bungie tie slipped off the item he was securing and hit him directly in the left eye. An ambulence was called and he was taken to hospital as he couldn't see anything and the pain was indescribable. After two days of checks and tests at the hospital we have been told that he has torn the iris which has caused internal bleeding (his sight is now blurred and with a yellow cast) but thankfully his retina is not affected. This means 5 days of complete bed rest and medication to try to get the pressure in his eye down and reduce the inflamation. Nobody can predict at the moment whether he will recover his sight in that eye sufficiently to enable him to return to driving and everything else you have to be able to see well to do as an electrician. Obviously our trip has been postponed and he is sitting in bed going out of his mind with boredom, very sorry for himself.

I am sure everyone is probably aware of this possible hazard, but I would hate it to happen to anyone else so please be careful when using these ties.
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polremy
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Post by polremy »

How awful.
Do let us know how he gets on.
So good of you to think of warning other people when you must be really upset yourself.
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Marguerite & Steve
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Post by Marguerite & Steve »

Oh Bless him, must be so painful, hope he returns to a FULL recovery soon. Thanks for making us aware of these hidden dangers.

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Kathy
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Post by Kathy »

It was bad luck it hit Steve in his eye. Wish him well and thanks for the reminder of how dangerous those things are.
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ramonamcdaris
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Bungie ties

Post by ramonamcdaris »

I am so sorry to hear of this injury--and to the eye, yet! Thanks for warning everyone. I also had a similar incident as I was going down the aisle to exit a plane a few years ago. I had a bungie cord fixed to my carry-on luggage and it popped loose and the metal end hit a flight attendant's leg! She was not pleased. Fortunately, it only caused a bruise but I am sure it was very painful, and if there had been a short person behind me (i.e., a child) it could easily have hit an eye, too.

I hope your husband's eye is improving greatly!

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Post by thumbelina »

So sorry to hear this and, echoing everyone's sentiments, how kind of you to think of warning us when you have enough to worry about!

Sincere good wishes for a speedy and complete recovery.

xx
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Santiago
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Post by Santiago »

Ow! Nasty things bungies. If you were in the States you'd be sueing. Wishing you a quick recovery.
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Nigel and Karen
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Post by Nigel and Karen »

Thanks for the reminder, I use them a lot and was geting lazey so its a nice wake up for me.

Hope all goes well, and a speedy recovery.
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Post by carol sheridan »

What terrible luck - I am sure he has the best wishes of everyone here.
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Steve&Julie
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Post by Steve&Julie »

Hi!

Thanks everyone for all your messages of support, it really is a comfort to know that others are thinking of you!

Steve has been back to the hospital three times this week for checks etc. They have said that the injury has stabilised thankfully the pressure is down to normal and no more bleeding so its looking positive. However he still has very smeary, blurred vision out of the eye a bit like as if vaseline has been smeared over it! He has been told it is just time now until it clears and cannot assess how long it will take as there are trapped cells and debris causing this. He cannot do any lifting or heavy work until it clears and will have to always have follow up appointments to make sure it hasn't deteriorated again. As an electrical contractor you can imagine how impractical this is!

He has been very lucky I think, and he will have to take the hospital's advice! Needless to say, we are now a bungie-free business!
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Kathy
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Post by Kathy »

Sounds promising Julie but a worrying time nevertheless. Glad to hear of the improvement.
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Sav
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Post by Sav »

Not good news Julie :(
Especially as you were about to embark over, similar to what happened to me last year :roll:
Tell Steve to stay positive, i'm sure god willing the eye will settle down & he will be back to good health :D

Cheers Sav :)
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john
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Post by john »

Sounds nasty Julie. Pass on our best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Must make mental note....... Add bungy ties to the list of things that I can say ; "you'll have someone's eye out with that..." about.
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polremy
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Post by polremy »

john wrote:Sounds nasty Julie. Pass on our best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Must make mental note....... Add bungy ties to the list of things that I can say ; "you'll have someone's eye out with that..." about.
mr polremy's favourite phrase - well, vying closely with
"(s)hes got an arse like a house end"
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Colin L
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Post by Colin L »

polremy wrote: "(s)hes got an arse like a house end"
Not, I hope, when referring to Mrs Polremy. :lol: My own object of comparison has always been "the back end of a corporation bus".

If we are considering the larger posterior, have you ever watched women's ski racing on tv? For some obscure reason, there is usually a camera at the back of the start hut focused on the rear of the racer who is of course bent forward ready to go. Now these young lasses, for obvious reasons, are on the more expansive side of sylphlike, and this camera angle does them no favours at all. :roll:

I am in danger of sidetracking this thread. So back to topic. I do hope that Mr Polremy will soon be restored to full vision and be able to focus sharply on all arses large and small.
Last edited by Colin L on Fri 13 Mar 2009 19:17, edited 1 time in total.
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polremy
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Post by polremy »

Colin L wrote:
polremy wrote: "(s)hes got an arse like a house end"
Not, I hope, when referring to Mrs Polremy. :lol:
of course not!!!
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polremy
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Post by polremy »

mr. pol remy says thanks for your concern.
and he has reminded me that his most recent phrase, usually reserved for(femail of course - wouldn't apply to men obviously!!!) tv celebrities that he hasn't seen for a bit, i :

"oo, she's let herself go!"
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Kathy
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Post by Kathy »

Is Steve OK now Julie?
Chris
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Post by Chris »

These things are deadly; many appointments at my local eye casualty department are due to these. The main problem is that they are at exactly eye level when securing a load to a car roof rack. Monocular people (people with only one eye) are routinely advised against using them at all; maybe this advice should be extended to everyone else.
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Post by Steve&Julie »

Hi!

We have been told Steve will always have an 80% loss of vision in his damaged eye now. He says its like looking through the bottom of a bottle - sort of misty, and he gets annoying flashes of light. They say this is because of light leaking in through his damaged iris - this will never repair itself. Also, because his iris does not react to light as effectively as it should, car headlights are dazzling. In general, he goes about his work much as before - when you are self employed you just have to get on with it - and I think he is just learning to live with it. I think those long late night drives across France are out now however - too risky.

We are considering getting a second opinion to see if anything could be done. I have seen adverts from Vision Express who say they take picture of your eye, so he has made an appointment to see what they think and if any different kind of glasses or even contact lenses could help.

Steve says that the metal hook bent which is why the elastic cord came free, but it happened so quickly he had no time to react. We will certainly never use them again, even though they are no doubt a practical way of securing a load - too dangerous.
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Sav
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Post by Sav »

Sorry to hear this news Julie.
Has Steve been seen by Moorfields, if not a referal might be an idea.

Cheers Sav
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polremy
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Post by polremy »

Steve&Julie wrote:Hi!

We have been told Steve will always have an 80% loss of vision in his damaged eye now. He says its like looking through the bottom of a bottle - sort of misty, and he gets annoying flashes of light. They say this is because of light leaking in through his damaged iris - this will never repair itself. Also, because his iris does not react to light as effectively as it should, car headlights are dazzling. In general, he goes about his work much as before - when you are self employed you just have to get on with it - and I think he is just learning to live with it. I think those long late night drives across France are out now however - too risky.

We are considering getting a second opinion to see if anything could be done. I have seen adverts from Vision Express who say they take picture of your eye, so he has made an appointment to see what they think and if any different kind of glasses or even contact lenses could help.

Steve says that the metal hook bent which is why the elastic cord came free, but it happened so quickly he had no time to react. We will certainly never use them again, even though they are no doubt a practical way of securing a load - too dangerous.
Sorry to hear this news, Julie.
Thank you for letting us know.
And, thank you for warning everyone.
Do try Moorfields. My mum has nothing but praise for them.
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Post by Chris »

Sorry, but I very much doubt if taking a picture of the retina will be of any value. Also, I very much doubt if new glasses will help, except perhaps darkly tinted lenses may help the glare problem, perhaps Cat3 or Cat4 with a 100% UV filter. (These must never be worn for night driving though as they are too dark.)
The one thing I think might be worth trying is an opaque soft contact lens with a small clear pupil, this would ensure that light only enters the eye through the pupil and not through the tear in the iris which might help the glare problem. Cosmetically it should look OK since the dark part could be made about the same colour as the iris in your other eye, although the pupil sizes may be different between your two eyes depending on illumination (very few people would notice this.) I'd be surprised if a high street optical store could get you one of these, your best bet would be a contact lens specialist at a hospital eye department such as Moorfields or in private practice.
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Marguerite & Steve
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Post by Marguerite & Steve »

Julie, give Steve all our best.
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Roger O
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Post by Roger O »

Chris - do you think there would be any other useful facility available in the Médipole centre? Just asking..
I deal in Logic!
"Magic" is applied science far in advance of our current technology.
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