‘Everything Went Dark’: Helmetless Rider Survives 33 Glass Shards In Throat After Pune Accident

Last Updated:June 07, 2025, 21:28 IST

The incident occurred on April 21 when the youth, riding without a helmet, collided head-on with a pickup truck in Pune

The biker was without a helmet when he collided head-on with the four-wheeler (Representative image)

A 20-year-old college student almost lost his voice after a road accident left him with 33 glass pieces embedded in his throat in Chakan, Pune.

The incident occurred on April 21 when the youth, riding without a helmet, collided head-on with a pickup truck.

The impact flung him onto the windshield of the truck, shattering it and forcing shards of glass deep into his neck. He was rushed to Medicover Hospital in Chinchwad in a semi-conscious state, bleeding heavily from his throat.

“The accident and the surgery took place on April 21. The larynx was swollen. We had to remove 33 glass pieces from the patient’s throat; some were so tiny and deeply embedded that it took immense precision and patience to remove them,” Dr Manohar Suryawanshi, ENT and head & neck surgeon at Medicover Hospital was quoted as saying by TOI.

The medical team also had to delicately repair blood vessels and nerves surrounding the larynx. The proximity of the glass to vital structures in the throat raised concerns about long-term voice impairment.

However, the patient made a steady recovery. He was discharged in stable condition on April 29 and, in a follow-up visit on May 29, had regained his natural voice.

“The patient recovered, and when he came to us for a follow-up, he had regained his original voice,” Dr Suryawanshi added.

According to neurosurgeon Dr Ninad Patil, who also treated the patient, “Though the patient may have suffered some head trauma, the injuries to the throat were more serious. The glass had pierced deeply, and it was a rare and risky surgery to perform.”

The young man reportedly does not remember the accident. “Everything went dark after the crash,” he is said to have told doctors during his recovery.

The incident has renewed focus on road safety and the life-saving importance of wearing helmets. Doctors noted that the outcome could have been far worse had the shards pierced deeper into the vocal cords or major blood vessels.

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