Mum of Scotland fan who broke back in horror crash praises support

THE mum of a Scotland fan who broke his back in a horror crash in Germany has praised the support he has received.

Gary Ellis, 23, was seriously injured in the head-on collision outside Weeze airport on June 14.

The Dundee lad was travelling with pals to the Euros when he was involved in the horrific collision.

Gary and the 25-year-old driver of the car were both seriously hurt in the crash.

His mum Mandy raced from Scotland to his side while he recovered from his injuries.

But she has told how she was blown away by the kindness and generosity of total strangers after the horror crash.

A fundraiser to support Gary was set up and has already reached over £11,000.

She told the BBC: “The love, well wishes and generosity is just outstanding.

“Strangers that don’t even know us or Gary that have just been touched by the event and have gave so generously.

“It will go a long way to help him with this recovery, and support him through this time until he’s well enough to return to normal life.”

Mandy told how her son has a long recovery ahead but has managed to get back on his feet and has started to walk again.

Three other men, all aged 23, were slightly injured in the crash.

Police probing the accident believe the Citroen C3 the lads were in was being driven in the wrong lane when it crashed head-on with a Mercedes.

The 45-year-old man from Dusseldorf behind the wheel of the Merc was slightly injured.

A statement by German police said: “On Friday at around 00:10 a.m., a traffic accident occurred on the airport ring in Weeze, in which two people were seriously injured and four people were slightly injured.

“A 25-year-old Scotsman was travelling with four other men from Scotland (25, 23, 23 and 23 years old) in a rental car, a Citroen C3, after arriving at the airport to travel on to Düsseldorf.

“The five men were a group of friends who had travelled to Germany for UEFA EURO 2024.

“On the way from the terminal towards the exit, the man from Scotland drove in the lane for oncoming traffic.

“This resulted in a head-on collision with a Mercedes Benz S-Class driven by a 45-year-old man from Düsseldorf who was travelling towards the terminal.

“Based on the investigations as part of the accident report, it is suspected that the Scottish driver used the wrong lane due to the left-hand traffic in his home country.”