SOUTH BEND, Ind. (WNDU) – A Mishawaka man who survived after crashing his truck in Porter County and being trapped for six days is speaking out for the first time on camera.
Matt Reum, 27, posted two videos on Facebook on Thursday in which he gave an update on his condition and thanked everyone for their support.
It’s been over a week since Reum was first found by two fisherman after being stuck under a bridge on I-94 for six days. Now, after spending more than a week at Memorial Hospital and having part of his leg amputated, he went to Facebook to give us an update on how he’s doing.
“I got moved down to rehab yesterday,” Reum explained in one of the videos. “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. So, I’m now walker bound, and I have a wheelchair, and I’m able to get around, which is amazing.”
Memorial Hospital confirmed Reum’s transfer to inpatient rehabilitation in an update sent to WNDU 16 News Now late Thursday afternoon. Officials also said Reum’s condition had improved from “serious” to “fair.”
Reum expressed that he never thought he would have to worry about how he would accomplish simple daily tasks at his age.
“There are so many things that we take for granted in life, and now I can’t take it for granted,” he said. “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.’”
Reum said that he is looking for a new apartment that is more wheelchair friendly, and he says it’s possible thanks to the kindness and generosity of others from all across the country.
“If I didn’t have this huge support group I have from you guys, I would have never, it would have been impossible,” he said. “But I’m looking right now, and I can do it.”
So far, the GoFundMe that was created to help pay for Reum’s medical expenses has raised just over $90,000. Its original goal was $25,000.
“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,” he said.
If you would like to donate to Reum’s GoFundMe, click here.
You can watch both videos in their entirety below:
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