Bristol race attack victim K-Dogg 'glad to be alive'

Media captionAn NHS worker who was injured in a racially-aggravated attack calls for change.

A young NHS worker who was seriously injured by a car in a racially-aggravated attack says he is "glad he is still here breathing".

The 21-year-old musician, who only gave his name as K or K-Dogg - the name he performs under - was attacked while walking to the bus stop from his job at Southmead Hospital, Bristol.

Witnesses said a dark blue Honda Accord was deliberately driven at him before two men shouted racial abuse at him.

The attack happened on 22 July.

K had just said goodbye to a friend and had put his headphones on when he was hit by the car and thrown by the impact of the crash into the front garden of a house.

Image copyright Family photo Image caption The NHS worker's family released photos of K's injuries after the attack

Witnesses said the men then ran from the car.

"I remember bleeding and people came to help me off the wall and I was on the floor being bandaged up," K said.

He was unable to walk after the incident and was bleeding profusely from his head.

He was treated by his colleagues at Southmead Hospital for a broken leg, nose and cheekbone before undergoing plastic surgery.

He said no-one would show him the extent of his facial injuries in the hospital and he only saw them for the first time when he went home in the early hours of the following morning.

"When I got home I looked in the mirror and that's when I saw it," he said.

Image caption K is a musician and was due to play at St Paul's Carnival in Bristol this summer before if was cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic

"I was like 'Wow'. The doctor obviously said it's going to heal but I'm going to have this for the rest of my life - marks on my face for the rest of my life."

Doctors told him if he had not been so physically fit, he would have died at the scene.

He also thanked everyone who rushed to his aid, adding: "If it wasn't for them, I'm not sure if I would be here."

Police say the car was deliberately driven at him and have confirmed it is being treated as a racially-aggravated assault.

He said he was still scared and that the incident had not only affected him, but his family and friends as well.

'These people need help'

"I'm traumatised. I don't even know if it might happen again," he said.

"No-one has been arrested yet so the suspects are still at large. They could come to my house right now and anything could happen.

"For my family, for them going to the shop and so on, they probably have started to feel like it's not safe for them.

"Even some of my mates now, they're kind of watching themselves every time they are on the road. They're always looking around.

"Even let's say I recover, I don't feel like I'm safe anymore to do anything."

Image caption K has been told he will recover but the scars on his head from his facial injuries are likely to remain

Doctors have said it will take a minimum of six months before he is able to do "most things" but it will take longer for him to be back to full fitness.

His injuries are so severe that he is unable to go upstairs in his home and can only sleep in a chair at a 45-degree angle.

"Any small movements, anything I try to do right now is just proper painful, which is not pleasant at all," he said.

He said he had decided to speak out to make people aware and to prevent it happening to anyone else.

"What was said after kind of confirmed why it happened. These people might need help or something. What goes on in someone's head to do that kind of thing. I've not got a problem with anyone.

"Something has to happen and something has to change because we can't keep living like this."