Brave girl
It looks painful – and the doctors assure that Leang Seangly was really, really brave. The moments of shock are still written all over the 13-year-old's face: She was hit by a car while crossing the road and hurled away. The bones of her lower right leg were shattered and pierced her leg. The open fracture caused unimaginable pain.
At the children's hospital in Siem Reap, a team stabilised her bones with an external fixator - this is a kind of pin that protrudes from the tibia. During an operation, the device is fixed into the bone with long screws. This fixes the individual fragments created by the fracture in the right place.
For the bones to grow back together well, rest and a lot of patience are now needed. The doctors estimate that it will take three months to heal - after that, Leang Seangly can put full weight on her leg again. The mother is always by the girl's side and tries to distract her with comforting words.
The description of Leang Seangly’s accident is heartbreaking, especially knowing that something as ordinary as crossing a road led to such a serious injury. The title Crossy Road came to mind because it is a casual arcade game about getting a character safely across busy roads, but reading this story makes the idea of road safety feel much more real. I appreciate how the article keeps the focus on her recovery and the patience it will take.