A young Melbourne woman who was thrown from her motorbike when a car turned across her path has spoken of the 'battle' that nearly broke her after two years of surgeries, rehab and constant pain.
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that → throw → surgeries
Renee Bilal was 24 when the crash happened on a clear September morning in 2023.
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crash → happen → 2023
She was riding her red Honda CRF300 west along the Melton Highway in Bonnie Brook, in Melbourne's north-west, when a Holden Commodore pulled out and stopped across the middle of the 80km/h road.
The driver had started turning right but slammed on the brakes when a truck approached from the opposite direction.
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truck → rid → direction
Renee braked hard but could not avoid the collision.
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Renee → brake → collision
She was thrown from her bike and suffered a shattered pelvis, a broken right wrist and other injuries she has been told will affect her for life.
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she → throw → life
Police found the driver, who stopped to help and called triple zero, at fault and issued him a ticket for failing to give way.
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who → find → way
Renee was taken by ambulance to the Royal Melbourne Hospital and admitted to intensive care.
Renee Bilal
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Renee → take → care
before the horrific motorbike crash in Melbourne's west that almost claimed her life
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that → claim → life
Renee in hospital with a shattered pelvis, a broken right wrist and other injuries she has been told will affect her for life
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she → shatter → life
Renee's pelvis was shattered and she had to learn how to walk again after every operation
What followed was four hospital stays, three surgeries, months living in rehabilitation, and the long, grinding process of learning to walk again - then relearning after every operation.
Metal plates and screws were used to hold her pelvis and left hip together.
The hardware that once kept Renee upright later became, in her words, 'my enemy'.
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that → shatter → words
Renee took on the Transport Accident Commission after it refused to accept responsibility for its role in the devastating crash.
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it → take → crash
The Victorian Government-owned organisation, which manages no-fault personal injury insurance for people injured in transport accidents in Victoria, even refused to fund Renee's weight loss medication after she gained weight after the accident.
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she → own → accident
On the second anniversary of the accident, Renee spoke of her ordeal to the Daily Mail.
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Renee → speak → Mail
'It's been two years,' she said.
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she → say → ?
From four hospital stays, three surgeries, and more pain than I ever thought I could handle.
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I → think → surgeries
From metal bolts and screws holding me together, to them becoming my enemy.
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them → hold → me
From loved ones showing up, to loved ones walking away.
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ones → love → ones
From endless physio sessions that test my strength, yet remind me I'm still here.'
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I → test → me
Renee said the saga had taught her the hardest lesson of all.
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saga → say → all
To fight for myself when no one else could.
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one → fight → myself
I still have a long road of recovery, but I've already proven how far I can go,' she said.
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she → have → recovery
'Everyone has a battle day they can't move forward from, no matter how long it's been.
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it → have → day
'This journey nearly broke me.
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journey → break → me
It has changed me forever.
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It → change → me
But it did not take me.
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it → take → me
And it will never defeat me.'
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it → defeat → me
Before the crash, Renee worked at a pet crematorium and as a waitress at a reception venue in Taylors Lakes.
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Renee → work → Lakes
She had planned to study and work with animals at the RSPCA.
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She → plan → RSPCA
Renee has not been able to return to work since the accident and lives with ongoing pain, a disability parking permit and regular physiotherapy.
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Renee → return → pain
Painful plates and screws were attached to her broken bones
Renee Bilal learning to walk again
- Everything
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Bilal → attach → bones
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you → need → Download
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Mail → launch → podcast
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Her lawyers at Arnold Thomas & Becker, who began acting for her in December 2023, have now secured a 'life-changing' settlement, which Renee wanted to keep private.
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Renee → gain → which
Principal Aki Munir said no amount of money could give Renee back the life she had planned.
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she → say → life
'What this settlement does is give her security, so she can focus on her recovery and her future without financial pressure,' he said.
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he → give → pressure
'What stands out about Renee is that she didn't just fight for herself.
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she → stand → herself
She pushed for that intersection to be made safer, and now there are traffic lights there.
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intersection → push → ?
That will protect other people.
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That → protect → people
Anyone seriously injured in a transport accident should get legal advice early, because strict time limits apply.'
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limits → injure → advice
After the crash, Renee lodged a complaint about the safety of the Leakes Road and Melton Highway intersection.
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Renee → lodge → intersection
…and 1 more, not listed.
The Aporia
