Matt Reum hoping to go home soon, following rescue from six days trapped in crashed truck
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A young man who lost a leg after he was trapped in his wrecked pickup truck for six days along a creek in Northwest Indiana said Thursday he's out of rehab, and hopes to go home from the hospital soon, and find a new apartment.
Matt Reum, 27, drove his pickup truck off I-94 near Portage on Dec. 20, and ended up down a ravine and under a bridge along the rushing Salt Creek. His Ram 1500 pickup truck was smashed and mangled, and he couldn't get out – nor reach his phone to call for help.
Reum drank rainwater to survive, and used his deployed airbag as a blanket when temperatures dropped. Finally, on the afternoon of Tuesday, Dec. 26, two fishermen who had come to scout out a spot along the creek just happened across Reum – and called 911 for first responders to come to his rescue.
Reum was airlifted to Memorial Hospital in South Bend. At the time, he was in critical condition – and officials said his injuries were "life-threatening."
Days later, Reum was showing signs of progress – but his injuries remain serious. He is still recovering from a leg amputation, a broken ankle, and a broken hand.
Reum posted a pair of videos on social media on Thursday, providing an update on his recovery, and thanking his supporters.
Reum said he is out of physical rehabilitation and his doctors are talking about discharging him soon. He said is now using a walker and a wheelchair to get around, and hopes to find a new apartment that is more wheelchair accessible.
"It's been a week and a day since I was rescued, and for that I am beyond happy. The only reason my voice sounds melancholy right now is just because I'm so tired," Reum said. "They believe my surgery has gone well enough, and I'm healing strong enough from that to where I can start working on getting back into society."
Reum said he never thought that, at age 27, he would have to worry about how he'll simply get around, get into bed, and accomplish other everyday tasks.
"There are so many things that we take for granted in life, and now I can't take it for granted. I have to think about, okay, when I get in my truck, this is how I have to do it. This is how I have to get in my bed now. This is how I have to live life," he said.
Since his rescue, Reum said he has received messages and letters of support from across the country. He said he had heard from people from California, Connecticut, Minnesota, and Washington.
"Being able to be the beneficiary of all this – I almost feel unwarranted love – it almost breaks my heart every time I start thinking about it," he said. "You guys have made something that would be so hard for a normal person to go through, and you have showered me with love, and you have shown me so much kindness that there is not enough, and there is no way I can ever start to repay you guys, or just say thank you enough, but I'm going to try."
"Thank you for all of these blessings, thank you for revitalizing my hope in humanity, because you guys have been amazing," he added.
Reum did not say when he will be discharged, but he said he is working toward that goal.
"I can start looking once I get discharged, and I can get into an apartment within a month - and I can get new furniture that is going to help me to live my life better," he said.
It is still unclear what caused the initial crash.