Teenage girl 'scalped' in horror crash in Yorkshire which killed four friends speaks about ordeal

Robyn Hoban, who was just 16 at the time of the crash, was a passenger in a Seat Leon which was involved in an accident on the A6120 in Horsforth in the early hours of June 30 in which four young men were killed when their car collided with a taxi.

-> VIDEO: Watch the terrifying moment a speeding van flies over a busy roundaboutBrandon Frew, 19, Caelan Megson, 21, Matt Walshaw, 18, and Declan Grove, 19, described as ‘the best lads you could ever meet’, died in the collision. An inquest into their deaths has been opened and adjourned.

Robyn, who can’t remember the accident, another 17 year old girl and the taxi driver survived but suffered serious injuries.

“We know how lucky we are,” says roofer dad Paul, from Cookridge.

“It is a miracle she survived.

"But our thoughts go out to those families who lost a child – that could easily have been us. The whole community has been rocked by what happened.”

Robyn was today speaking at an event in Leeds to celebrate fourth anniversary of trauma service Day One – which supported her after the accident – and to announce the service, which has helped more than 400 people, is to be expanded across all West Yorkshire hospitals.

Her experience over the last two months has actually helped her decide what she wants to do with the rest of her life.

“I had no idea what I wanted to do before the accident, but the care and support I got from all the staff the LGI (Leeds General Infirmary) and then at Chapel Allerton Hospital made me realise I really want to be a nurse, I want to give something back.”

-> Leeds family's two years of abuse as neighbour spat at them and threw tea over grandmotherThe Hobans say their journey has also been made bearable with the help and support from trauma charity Day One at the LGI which today announced it was expanding across all West Yorkshire hospitals.

The not-for-profit service funded by Leeds Cares sourced Robyn a wig which helped give her her confidence back.

“It has made going back to school easier but I don’t mind not wearing the wig, it is part of what happened.”

Robyn was on a ventilator in intensive care for a number of days after being put into an induced coma.

“You watch her every movement from the first twitch of her finger,” says Paul, who spent a month sleeping on a camp bed next to his youngest daughter.

“When she came round she put her hands to her head and felt that she had no hair and started to panic so I told her what had happened.”

Robyn has since received support from psychologists to help her come to terms with what happened.

The family have been moved by the level of dedication staff showed from the beginning and throughout Robyn’s ongoing journey, as well as support from family and friends.

A maxillofacial surgeon had the job of reattaching Robyn’s scalp which involved a large number of staples and has left her with a large scar around her head. She had surgery to her pelvis which now has two screws in it, which Robyn hopes will be removed soon.

After five weeks in the LGI she was moved to Chapel Allerton last month where she had to undergo neuro rehabilitation which is ongoing as she tries to get her life back to normal.

It is clear Robyn, who turned 17 in hospital, is an extremely positive and determined young woman who wants to get on with her life.

Her parents are understandably protective and want their daughter to slow down.

“She wants to run before she can walk sometimes,” says Paul.

“Robyn is so positive despite what she has been through,” says Amanda. “She has really helped us cope.”

Paul and Amanda Hoban know they are lucky their daughter Robyn is alive.

-> Leeds man renames his chippy 'Greedy Landlord' in row with ownerBut the last nine weeks have also been life changing for the Hobans from Cookridge, who have another daughter Rebecca, 19. For weeks they stayed at their daughter’s bedside night and day as she slowly returned to consciousness.

Robyn, who played netball for West Yorkshire and is a cheerleader, broke her pelvis, neck and ribs. She was also ‘degloved’ which meant her scalp was torn off.

But despite these devastating injuries and the psychological effects of the crash, Robyn was determined to return to Horsforth High School this week to gradually resume her A-level studies having only been discharged from hospital less than two weeks ago.

Staff at the hospital also put her in touch with Sarah Johnson who was in the M62 crash five years ago which killed Bethany Jones, 18, and now acts as a peer supporter for Day One.

“It was so amazing to be able to talk to Sarah,” says Robyn. “She is young and has been through a similar experience to me and just listened when I needed to talk. Mum and dad and the doctors and nurses were there all the time, but sometimes I just needed someone else to talk to.

“We have become really good friends. She messages me to check I am okay and if I’m not she will call me for a chat to find out what’s wrong.” Robyn has been so inspired by the help

Sarah has given her that she wants to become a peer supporter for Day One when she is fully recovered.

“If I can help just one person it will mean that something positive has come out of this terrible tragedy,” says Robyn, who keeps in touch with the mums of the boys who lost their lives. She can’t remember anything about the accident and it was her dad who broke the news about the boys’ deaths.

“I was away at the World Cup in Russia when it happened and was due back later on the Saturday,” says Paul. “When Amanda phoned me to say what had happened I tried to get an earlier flight back from Russia but couldn’t.”

Robyn’s mum Amanda, a medical secretary at St James’s Hospital, was woken by a call from her sister saying Robyn had been involved in an accident. They went to the scene of the crash, and went with Robyn to hospital. Amanda says the next days and weeks are a blur. “We just took it day by day, in fact we still are. Robyn has come such a long way but there is still a long journey ahead.”

-> This is how you could land a stunning £500,000 house with a swimming pool for just £10Robyn was on a ventilator in intensive care for a number of days after being put into an induced coma.

“You watch her every movement from the first twitch of her finger,” says Paul, who spent a month sleeping on a camp bed next to his youngest daughter.

“When she came round she put her hands to her head and felt that she had no hair and started to panic so I told her what had happened.”

Robyn has since received support from psychologists to help her come to terms with what happened.

The family have been moved by the level of dedication staff showed from the beginning and throughout Robyn’s ongoing journey, as well as support from family and friends.

A maxillofacial surgeon had the job of reattaching Robyn’s scalp which involved a large number of staples and has left her with a large scar around her head. She had surgery to her pelvis which now has two screws in it, which Robyn hopes will be removed soon.

After five weeks in the LGI she was moved to Chapel Allerton last month where she had to undergo neuro rehabilitation which is ongoing as she tries to get her life back to normal. It is clear Robyn, who turned 17 in hospital, is an extremely positive and determined young woman who wants to get on with her life.

Her parents are understandably protective and want their daughter to slow down.

“She wants to run before she can walk sometimes,” says Paul. “Robyn is so positive despite what she has been through,” says Amanda. “She has really helped us cope.”

From the outside it is only the scar on Robyn’s forehead that shows anything happened to her on that fateful night,

but she and her parents know that the emotional scars could take a lot longer to heal. But they believe she has been given the best chance thanks to Day One and the NHS staff in Leeds.