THE last survivor to escape from the wreckage of a helicopter that plunged into the North Sea has revealed he still has nightmares about the disaster.
Four people died when the Super Puma crashed off Shetland as it approached Sumburgh Airport.
James Nugent and 13 other people managed to scramble out of the flooded wreckage after the aircraft hit the water and turned upside down. And the father-of-one has been left traumatised by the ordeal – and gets flashbacks to the crash every time he hears a helicopter’s engine and rotor blades.
The 41-year-old, who is originally from Johannesburg in South Africa but now lives at Newquay in Cornwall, is seeing a psychologist and a physiotherapist to help him recover.
He said: “I get nightmares every night where I am fighting my way out of the fuselage, being held back and struggling to reach the surface.
“I dream about people grabbing my hands and feet and they try to hold me back.
“Sometimes my clothes get caught in the fuselage and I can’t get out.
“They are a lasting consequence of my traumatic experience. The majority of the time I wake up with headaches.
“I received a compressed fracture in the lower lumbar region. Doctors told me the trauma from the accident is causing my migraines and the back pain.”
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Mr Nugent and 15 other offshore workers were on board a CHC-operated AS332 L2 Super Puma that was returning from the Borgsten Dolphin oil platform on August 23.
He said: “Everything was going normally when suddenly there was a loud noise that came from above.
“It was an almighty bang – like metal on metal.
“I immediately knew something was wrong. I looked around and saw everyone else was in shock. We knew something was going to happen.”
He and the other passengers, who were still strapped into their seats, found themselves fighting for survival as the helicopter began to sink.
Mr Nugent said: “I was hanging upside down in the fuselage for about a minute until I managed to release the harness.
“I closed my eyes and released my seatbelt. I was floating in the fuselage and managed to find an open window.
“Only when I reached the surface, I opened my eyes. It was absolute carnage. Everyone was panicking and one guy was having a heart attack.
“I think I was the last person out of the fuselage.
“Only afterwards we noticed that four people were missing. We worked it out while we were in hospital and we realised that this was something big.
“I knew the people well and all of a sudden you will never see them again.”
The crash claimed the lives of Sarah Darnley, 45, from Elgin, and Gary McCrossan, 59, from Inverness, as well as Duncan Munro, 46, from Bishop Auckland, and George Allison, 57, from Winchester.
Mr Nugent has been unable to return to work and has not received any pay since the disaster, leaving him with an uncertain outlook and doubts about whether he will ever be able to go offshore again.
He said: “When you go to work, you don’t think for a second that you could be in one of those helicopters that crashes.
“Whenever I see or hear a helicopter in real life or on TV, the memories come flooding in and take me back to that point. The distinctive helicopter sound has embedded itself in my mind.”
He has been able to rely on his partner, Emma, 33, and their three-year-old daughter, Indi-Eve, who have given him strength to work through his trauma.
Mr Nugent said: “I have now started seeing a psychologist and a physiotherapist to help me get on with my life.
“My daughter was the first thing that I thought of when it all happened and she’s been great. I’m so happy to see her.
“My partner Emma is the one who bore the brunt of everything from the accident to dealing with doctors and solicitors.”
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