Alton Towers victim Vicky Balch tells ITV News: 'I didn't think I'd have the strength to pull through'

Alton Towers victim Vicky Balch has told ITV News she feared she would die in The Smiler rollercoaster crash.

The 20-year-old university student from Lancashire said she knew she was losing too much blood and didn't think she would ever get out.

"It felt like I was on there for a year. It was ages. I didn't know if I'd actually have the strength to pull through."

Speaking about the day of the rollercoaster crash, she said: "It changed everything.

"I got on the ride. We went round as normal. It got to the first hill and we got to the top and it just stopped. We didn't know what was happening.

"Then all of a sudden there was a massive clank and we set off.

"It went round a hoop and as we did I saw the cart and we bumped into it multiple times.

"I remember it going into my knees. It's hard to describe the pain. And then I fainted.

"My friend Dan was screaming my name and I gained consciousness again. Everyone was screaming. It went from screams of excitement to screams of terrifying pain."

Vicky said people below were filming the horrific scene as they waited to be rescued and those on the ride were screaming at them to stop.

She said she checked her face and top half of her body and was relieved she was okay.

It was only when she looked down at her legs that she realised the extent of her injuries.

Vicky, who was in hospital for eight weeks after the accident, said the worst thing was losing her independence.

"Mum's with me all the time, not that I mind, but I've got no independence anymore.

"I used to cook for myself, do everything for myself. It's like I've gone back to being a little girl."

Looking to the future, she said she wanted to go back to university one day.

"I get jealous of my friends who are all going back, but I don't know how long it's going to be before I'm able to walk without being aided so I try not to think about what ifs."