‘I could hear loud cracks in my neck’

Jackson Sievers was getting ready to leave a trampoline park when he attempted one last backflip. It was a decision that shattered his world.

The 22-year-old was left a quadriplegic when he landed awkwardly at Sky Zone in Canberra.

Now Sievers is warning others of the dangers of trampoline parks.

The Australian National University student had only been home four days after a dream trip with his girlfriend in Turkey when the accident happened.

Mr Sievers was a nature lover who frequented the trampoline spot when we wasn’t rock climbing, camping and hiking.

He had big plans for the next stage of his life and was about to leave for China to study at university.

But on that fateful day in January 2018, while hanging out with a friend he leaped and landed on his head.

The impact broke his neck, between his C4 and C5 vertebrae.

He will never walk again, and only has limited use of his hands.

Mr Sievers remembers everything about the accident - including the sickening snap of his neck.

“It was getting close to the time we were leaving, and I thought I would do a few more backflips,” Mr Sievers told nine.com.au.

“When I came down on my head, I could just hear some very loud cracks in my neck. Most of my body went limp.

“I tried to move my legs, my arms, nothing was moving.”

An ambulance rushed him to hospital in Canberra, and he was then flown to the Prince and Princess of Wales Hospital in Sydney to undergo emergency surgery.

Medics secured his spine with bolts, metal plates and a bone graft.

He was told early on how life changing the injuries would be.

As a disability carer, including for people with spinal injuries, the young student had feared the worst.

“They did tell me there was pretty much no chance of walking again,” he said.

“It was really confronting news.”

The 22-year-old was in ICU for two weeks before being moved to a spinal ward.

Complications led to more surgery, including to repair a hole in his throat, which left him unable to eat or drink for two months.

Instead he was fed by tubes.

Mum Maria, 49, had to give up her job as a contractor in Canberra to be by his side in Sydney.

Dad Jason, a manager at a bedding firm, also 49, spent weekends with him.

Mr Sievers, who had almost finished his degree in Asia-Pacific Security, spent a total of ten months in hospital.

But when he was finally discharged, he couldn’t return to his student house in Ainslie.

Instead family and friends ran an appeal to raise money to convert the family garage into a specially equipped room for him.

A total of $28,000 was gathered and he’s now moved in.

He wrote a touching thank you to supporters on the Go Fund Me page.

“I’ll no longer feel the comfort of my own bed or enjoy laying on the couch as my body today has no feeling from the shoulders down, instead I’ll sit up in a customised wheelchair and bed to ensure I don’t risk further damage,” he wrote.

“I still can’t believe or accept that I’m a quadriplegic, because in my mind I’m still running around in my car, going to Uni, hiking with friends and travelling; when in reality I’m sitting in my wheelchair most of the day now waiting for someone to feed me, going to physio, specialists and psychology appointments.

“Don’t worry, I don’t intend to be lying around all day feeling sorry for myself.

“I will continue to fight to get stronger and will spend the next couple of years undertaking intense rehabilitation to get an ever better quality of life…because ultimately we all only get one life and we need to make it count.”

Mr Sievers admits he does struggle to deal with what happened to him.

“I won’t lie, I absolutely do feel depressed. It’s just a massive change,” he said.

“Even just simple things like being able to make a meal for yourself, being able to go for a run or walk or a hike,” he said.

However, he’s still with his girlfriend Ida Lui, 31, an interior designer originally from Taiwan, and hopes to one day work again.

Meanwhile he warned other trampoline users of the dangers of the pastime, saying he cringes at images of people doing backflips.

“No doubt they are fun to muck around with, but they are so dangerous as well,” he said.

“So many people have been injured in a similar way, especially lots of kids.”

Louie Mould, 12, was also left a quadriplegic after a similar trampolining accident in NSW.

The talented athlete was at home in Cooma in the Snowy Mountains when he tried a double flip.

Louis landed awkwardly on the trampoline, compressing his C3, C4, and C5 vertebrae near the base of the neck.

He can now only move his big toe and has some limited movement in his upper left arm, thumb and finger and a flicker in his right arm.

A report released earlier this year found almost 500 children and teens went to hospital with trampoline park injuries from 2012 to 2017 in Victoria, Queensland and Western Australia

Standards Australia is currently working on a voluntary standard for trampoline parks.

However, once published, it would not be mandatory unless enforced by industry bodies.

The Australian Trampoline Parks Association has guidelines including staff to customer ratios, support netting under trampoline and depth of foam pits.

But only 20 percent of operators are members.

A spokeswoman for Sky Zone said it was “devastated” by Mr Sievers' accident and added the company is part of the Australian Trampoline Park Association.

“Our thoughts are with him and his family as they deal with his tragic injury," the spokeswoman said.

“We care deeply about his situation and our venue manager was in communication with the family at the time, and we have worked to maintain contact as the safety and well-being of our jumpers is paramount.

“A full investigation followed the incident, including a comprehensive review of all procedures, CCTV footage and equipment.

“The investigation found that no equipment was involved in the incident and the young man was not breaking any of Sky Zone’s safety rules.

“The accident occurred when the guest performed a back-flip which they had performed multiple times during their visit.

“As with any physical activity there is always the possibility of injuries occurring.

“We are committed to safety and are continually reviewing our processes to make sure everyone is as safe as possible at all times within our venues."

Sswain@ninenews.com.au