Shocking x-ray image as man survives brutal hammer attack

An x-ray image shows the horrific skull injuries suffered by a father-of-three after he was set upon by a gang of 30 thugs.

Published: 7:30AM GMT 18 Feb 2010

David Barry's face is held together by metal plates and nuts and bolts after he and his brother Thomas were attacked outside a pub by hammer-wielding youths.

The brothers both had emergency surgery to rebuild their faces after the vicious assault in Bethnal Green, East London, on New Year's Eve last year.

Remarkably David, 41, who suffered the worst injuries including a snapped palate, shattered eye socket, smashed cheekbone and six breaks to his jaw, now shows no outward signs of the ordeal.

The surgeon treating him said his injuries to his face were the worst he had ever seen on someone who had survived an attack.

David, a communications engineer from Ilford, East London, said: "It was one of the most frightening experience of my life seeing hammers raining down on me.

"I was out cold after the first few blows but witnesses told me they continued to hit me when I was unconscious and helpless.

"My face was in pieces when I came round and when I got to hospital doctors said it was a miracle my brother and I had survived."

From: http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/7259102/Shocking-x-ray-image-as-man-survives-brutal-hammer-attack.html