TRAGEDY❗️ Belay devices failed, and Piotrek fell from 13 meters ❗️ Help is needed❗️

On July 20, 2026, our lives fell apart. Our beloved son had a tragic accident. He fell from a height of 13 metres while rock climbing.

More than two years ago, he completed an international IRATA training and started working as an industrial rope access technician. His real passion, however, has become rock climbing. In Cracow, he climbed almost every day, and when the weather was bad, he would train at indoor climbing walls instead. He learned about it, educated himself, and gathered the necessary equipment. He proudly showed us the routes he had established. He loved what he did but loved the people he met along the way even more. He made friends easily and had a wonderful way of creating an atmosphere of freedom, friendship, and good energy. Over the years, he built a close circle of fantastic friends, many of whom are still by his side.

And one day, everything changed.

That evening, I got a phone call that Piotrek had fallen during one of his climbs and had been airlifted to the University Hospital. I felt as though the ground had fallen away beneath me. In one moment, my whole world just stopped. Our journey to the hospital seemed like an eternity. When we arrived at the ER, Piotrek had already been transferred to the neurosurgical ward. He was lying in the operating room. We didn’t know how long the surgery would take, or what had happened. We had to wait.

All that waiting was unbearable. The doctors were fighting for my beloved son’s life, and there was nothing I could do. I sent messages to all my friends and family members asking them to pray for Piotrek and, at the same time, tried to find out the reason for his accident. Eventually, we reached the person who had been climbing with Piotrek that day. As it turned out, he had been trad climbing, placing his own protection as he climbed. He fell when he was almost at the top of the route. The protection had failed, and he fell from a height of ca. 13 metres.

He survived thanks to a doctor who had been climbing nearby. He witnessed the fall, and immediately performed CPR on him until the firefighters and air rescue arrived.

The paramedics gave him a GCS (Glasgow Coma Scale) score of 3, the lowest possible score, and a sign that he was in a life-threatening medical emergency. Piotrek was put in a medically induced coma and intubated. He was then taken straight into an operating room, where he underwent life-saving surgery for a subdural hematoma and focal traumatic brain injury. The doctors found a right-sided brain midline shift of 8 mm, along with multifragmented skull, craniofacial, nasal, and orbital fractures. The neurosurgeons performed a decompressive craniectomy and removed the acute subdural hematoma.

We waited outside the operating room, barely able to breathe, while the doctors explained the procedures and prepared us for the worst-case scenario. I felt as though I was living through a nightmare. I couldn't believe this was really happening.

Eventually, we could enter the ICU and see Piotrek. He wasn’t moving. His head was heavily bandaged, and his face was swollen to the point that I almost didn’t recognize him. Numerous wounds and bruises covered his body—my son. I reached out and touched his hand. It was cold. Tens of tubes attached to his body connected him to life-saving devices.

A surgery to remove the hematoma was just the beginning. He was still at risk of developing intracranial hypertension, losing the ability to breathe independently, and right hemiplegia due to the brain injury of the left hemisphere. We were scared, and even though we were only allowed to see him for two hours a day in the ICU, we were thinking about him all the time. We cried endlessly and prayed for him, and so did our family, friends, and hundreds of people who barely knew us…

The doctors then decided to perform another surgery to stabilise the fractures of his facial bones and left eye socket. The following day, they began gradually bringing him out of the medically induced coma. Piotrek began showing us just how strong he really is. He not only didn’t develop intracranial hypertension, but his brain swelling slowly began to reduce. Then, he woke up, and shortly afterwards, he started breathing on his own.

Miracles do happen.

Less than a month after the accident, Piotrek’s condition is stabilised, and he’s gradually regaining his physical abilities. However, life after such a severe injury will never be the same. Due to the brain injury of the left hemisphere, he now suffers from aphasia. In a few months, he will also need another major operation - a cranioplasty to reconstruct the part of his skull that was removed during the emergency surgery.

Since the accident, we’ve been overwhelmed by the kindness and support we have received from hundreds of people. Doctors, family, friends, and people touched by what happened to Piotrek have all reached out to support him. During those first days, his condition was undetermined, and we didn’t know what the next hour would bring. Today, after four weeks of battle, we finally have a better understanding of what lies ahead.

The doctors believe that neurological rehabilitation after such a severe injury could take one to two years. But I know my son. I know how strong and determined he is. Piotrek has always been resilient.

However, the cost of the long-term neurological rehabilitation Piotrek needs is more than our family can afford. That is why we are reaching out and asking for your support. Every donation, and every share of Piotrek’s story, brings him one step closer to regaining his independence and returning to an active life.

From the bottom of our hearts, thank you for every bit of help and support.

Piotrek's Mom