A Scots teenager has been warned she may never be able to walk the same again after being seriously injured in a hit-and-run.
Alex Watson was hit by a car on Den Walk in Methil, Fife, at around 12.15am on Saturday January 14. The dark SUV then fled the scene without stopping.
Alex, 17, was on the phone to younger sister Morgan, 14, when the car hit her. Morgan heard a sickening "thud", with Alex left lying in the road unconscious with her leg broken in two places.
Alex was rushed to Ninewells Hospital in Dundee, where medics inserted a pin to repair the bones. However doctors fear she will suffer side effects for years, with future surgery a real possibility.
Speaking to the Record, Alex's mum Christine Thomson told how she's noticed a change in her daughter since the incident. She said: "We are all just devastated. Alex was so lively - she was out and about all the time.
"She's changed, I see a change in her. She's frightened if she's near a road. It's really badly affected her mental health. She was in surgery for five hours which has distressed her.
"The surgeons say she might never walk the same again, and there could be more surgery in future. The person who did this has ruined a young person’s mental and physical health.
"Alex has been left with PTSD and I'm sure Morgan, my younger daughter has too. She is only 14 and was on the phone to Alex when it happened. Then she had to go and identify her in the ambulance."
Morgan was on the way to meet Alex when the crash took place, and as soon as the call went quiet, she raced to where they had arranged to catch up. As well as the broken leg, Alex's nose was also broken and she chipped one of her teeth.
She also suffered severe bruising to her face, which was left very swollen. Alex will be on crutches in a moonboot for eight months, and is taking the powerful drug morphine to manage her pain.
She has also had to put a baking course she was due to start at Fife College in February on hold, and there are fears she will not be able to continue on to do childcare after the summer.
Alex goes back to hospital on January 31 to get staples out of her leg. There were fears she may need a bigger operation to put a disc in her leg which would have involved deeper incisions further down her leg.
Christine said: "She has been really, really brave, using her walking stick. Life has changed for her. It will be an eight-month recovery period. She can't go to college and I have to care for her. I'm doing exercises with her, helping her to bend her knee.
"When we are out Alex keeps flinching when cars are coming out sideways towards her and she has a fear of the roads.
"I've never seen Morgan like she was, in total shock. She's been upset and reliving it. It's funny, kids aren't sympathetic, I think they act out and be quite angry. It's definitely affected her behaviour.
"When we see the surgeon on the 31st I am going to ask about help for the emotional side of things, not just for Alex but for Morgan as well. They need to talk it over with somebody."
Police have since launched a probe into the incident and are trying to track down the driver who fled the scene.
Discussing the person who hit Alex not coming forward, Christine said: "We are completely disgusted. The person must know they knocked someone down.
"The CCTV shows they didn't even brake at all. l have been left sick to my stomach. That no one has come forward is beyond belief. Someone other than the person who did this must know who it is.
"We need to find the person responsible to help with healing. We need to know why and how this happened, to give us closure.
"She was a young girl going to meet her sister. Alex wasn't 'lucky' but she could easily have been killed."
Sergeant Lewis Greig from Police Scotland said: “Our inquiries into this incident are ongoing and I would urge anyone with information to get in touch.
“The car is described as a dark coloured 4×4 and I would appeal to anyone who was in the area at the time to get in touch if they have dashcam footage which may assist.”
Anyone with information should contact Police Scotland on 101, quoting incident number 0068 of January 14. Alternatively, information can be given anonymously to CrimeStoppers, on 0800 555 111.
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