Broken lift sees disabled man drag himself down stairs to train for wedding day

“With the wedding just over a week away, I thought, ‘even if I have to crawl I will be there’,” said Chris Purnell, 37, a wheelchair user

Chris Purnell dragging himself down the stairs of his block of flats in Granton, Edinburgh. (Courtesy of Chris Purnell / SWNS)

A disabled man trapped at home by a broken lift dragged himself down flights of stairs - for his wedding day.

Chris Purnell, 37, a wheelchair user, was stuck in his fourth-floor flat for a week because the elevator was not working.

Eventually, he had to drag himself down several flights of stairs to ensure he can do it on his big day.

Chris is set to get married on September 24 – but he became concerned that he might still be stuck by then.

Determined to make it to his wedding to fiancé Sarah he decided to practice the journey downstairs.

He said: “I reported the broken lift more than a week ago.

‘’It brought the whole anxiety of lockdown back when I was stuck in here all that time.

“With the wedding just over a week away, I thought, even if I have to crawl I will be there.

‘’That night I practiced going downstairs and dragged myself down.

“I got burns up and down me. Friends offered to carry me on my wedding day.

‘’But I feel I want my dignity. I didn’t want to have to rely on others to simply leave my house.”

Chris pays £150 a month to a company for maintenance at the flats.

Chris - who has a neurological condition that affects his mobility - has lived in his flat for eight years, moving prior to his diagnosis.

Since diagnosis, he has found it impossible to get an accessible property.

He said: “Since I have needed the wheelchair, the lift has been a lifeline to me.

‘’It has broken down before but has always been fixed in a day or so.

‘’Being confined to the house that long I thought I was going out of my mind.

“What has made it all so much worse is they have never acknowledged the impact on me.

‘’I pay more to them than my council tax. £150 a month is a lot of money.

‘’I’d move to a ground-floor flat if I could but it seems impossible to get an accessible property in the city.”

Luckily, Chris has received outpourings of support from friends, councillors, and his fiancée Sarah.

“Without Sarah, I wouldn’t have got through the last week. She has so much energy and enthusiasm,” he said.

‘’My local councillors have been so helpful too. Many people have messaged me wishing me well. I can’t thank them enough for their kindness.”

Property company James Gibb has been approached for a comment.