Sharon Steve's sister and I visited Steve this afternoon. When we got to the hospital Steve was sleeping. He must have know we were there because shortly after we arrived he woke up. Steve was much more talkative than the last few days and appeared to be stronger in himself.

His left arm is in a wrap around sling which holds his arm close to his body and makes it virtually impossible to move. Whilst we were there the left hand in the groin flap was checked by the nurse and it was found to be healthy and the blood supply to it was good. His right hand is bandaged but his arm is now uncovered revealing the extent of his injuries and the grafted areas. Both of his legs are still bandaged but these bandages are slowly being reduced.

We left Steve when his evening meal arrived. He is starting to once again eat more of his meals and has been told by his dietician to snack as much as he wants between meals. This is to build up his calorie intake which help build his strength up.

Steve has received many cards wishing him a speedy recovery. The latest was delivered today from White Watch Moss side. I read the card out to Steve and he thought it was great and wanted me to say thanks to the Whites at Moss and to everyone else who had gone out of their way to choose a card and send it to him.

We have only spent a short time each day with Steve since his operation on both hands last Wednesday. Steve has been very tired and is having to come to terms with his left hand and arm being secured in the groin flap. According to the Burns Centre nurses Steve is doing well since the surgery with coping with the restricted movement he now has on his left side. He is experiencing some pain but this is being managed by the nursing team. Steve has spoken little since Wednesday but we cannot expect anything more given what Steve has had to go through this week.

Steve's right hand will be examined over the next 3 weeks. If the hand is healing properly then this may prevent the hand from having to go in its own groin flap.
Steve is still being closely monitored by the nursing staff now on an hourly basis. The areas where the surgery was carried out appears to be healthy at this time and Steve is having some solid foods again.

Overall Steve's recovery is continuing. He is currently climbing yet another hill to get over what has happened this week. He'll get to the top and then he'll be on the down hill slope to feeling much better.

Steve is currently recovering from surgery to both his hands today. Steve went in for the surgery at 13:30 and came out of surgery at around 18:00. I was with Steve for an hour before he went into the operating theatre and I accompanied him to the theatre which is located in the Burns Centre. Prior to the operation going ahead Steve was in a positive frame of mind and we spoke about what was happening in the outside world and usual family stuff.

Whilst in the operating theatre Steve went through complex surgery which involved the surgical Team placing his left hand into what is called a groin flap. This required the left hand being placed under a flap of skin which was lifted and separated from the skin tissue below. The hand is attached with a blood supply from the within the flap to maintain a healthy and constant supply of blood to it.It is like Steve has had his hand placed in a pocket. The hand has been secured within this pocket and will have to remain in this pocket for approximately 3 weeks. This may initially cause Steve some discomfort has he has to come to terms with the fact that he will not be able to move his left arm for the 3 weeks. After 3 weeks the flap will be divided and the left hand will be lifted out.

Steve's right hand has had a graft of skin placed around it and attached to it, this area of new skin has also been attached to a healthy blood supply to enable it to develop into healthy skin around the damaged area.

Due to the complexity of the operation involving the groin flap and the area being very fragile Steve is being monitored by the nursing staff every 30 minutes over night. This is to keep a check on Steve and also to ensure that the groin flap is staying healthy and no complications are developing.

During the operation Steve has had further surgery on his fingers and thumbs resulting in the shortening of these areas.

The surgery went well for Steve and he himself did very well whilst in there. Today was his 13th operation and when I spoke to the nursing staff this evening he was just coming around from the anaesthetic but was recovering ok.

Steve is now back lying on his back. His grafts are still healing well and he his recovery is going in the right direction. He is eating a lot more solid food and should be off the liquid food supply within the next few days.

Steve has been taken through what will need to be done regarding surgery on his fingers and thumbs by his Consultant and the hand specialist. The surgery is scheduled to go ahead tomorrow afternoon (27/8). This as you can imagine will be difficult for Steve but we have reassured him and Steve is remaining in a positive mood. This to me speaks volumes for the type of man Steve is. I will be with him prior to him going into surgery so that someone is there at his side to support him.

As I said earlier Steve is recovering well. Once he has had the surgery on his hands he will continue to heal and get stronger. I will update you over the next two days on how Steve is and how the surgery went.

We have visited with Steve today and I can report to you that we found him more awake and talkative. Sharon His sister ( my wife) told me its the best she has seen Steve since that terrible night in June. His mum and Sharon went in to see Steve first. They told him about the family open day at Bolton Fire Station and of the get well wishes that everyone is sending him. They told him how supportive the Brigade and firefighters charity have been to us as a family. Sharon told me that Steve got somewhat emotional and said he knew the fire service would look after us and he was surprised by everything that was going on. The big thing for us is that he was taking all this information in and retaining it. He was asking questions and smiling like the girls have not seen him smile in such a long time.

Sharon and her mum came out in a real happy mood from seeing Steve, and it was a big lift for me to see them like that. We have had so many tears and to see smiles was great.
Next in was Louise, Steve's youngest niece and me. Steve and I spoke about the Olympics especially the mountain biking and Steve told me about the number of Gold's we had won overall and the rules regarding the mountain biking event! to me this was such an obvious sign that Steve was getting back towards his old self. Louise and Steve had a couple of laughs at my expense. Steve told Louise that I only had the number of friends I have now because everyone in Manchester fire now knows that I am his brother in law!!!! and it took him going into hospital to get me more than two texts messages a month on my phone ( typical Morris humour, but it was great seeing Steve laugh}. Steve also asked Louise to bring in the diary she is creating for him as he wants to see the pictures from the family open day and the filming his good friend Carl did of the day. We told him about Amir Khan, Suranne Jones and Dave Spikey coming along to support the day. He thought that was brilliant, and he told Louise he would like to meet Amir Khan because Steve has a real keen interest in boxing. He asked Louise what she thought of the celebs and Louise told him they were all really great. Louise told him that she said to Amir that he was wearing a very nice watch and Steve smiled at that comment. We left Steve resting as he had started to become tired.

Steve is currently lying on his side as the grafts on his upper rear legs are still healing. He still has bandages on his arms, hands and legs. His ears are uncovered and are healing well. He is now eating more solid food on a regular basis and is able to have physio most days. He is still on medication to help him to handle his pain and to ease the tension he sometimes feels. The nursing staff have said he has been doing very well since last Wednesdays full dressings change. This week coming up will probably see Steve having more surgery on his hands. We have to wait and see what the surgical team and the hand specialist have decided to do and what day they will be carrying out the surgery. As a family we will be with Steve every step of the way and we know all of you will be thinking of Steve this week.

As always I'll keep you informed.

Yesterday I was contacted by the Burns Team and asked to go into the burns centre. Steve was to have a full dressings change and it was to be the first without any anaesthetic. The Registrar thought it would be wise to have me there to support Steve through the procedure as there was a possibility that Steve would see the extent of his injuries for the first time.

I arrived at 11:45 and helped Steve to have his lunch of meat gravy, veg and mashed potatoes, following that he was allowed a rest before the dressing change began. He was administered pain killers orally and the senior nurse in charge gave me my instructions with what they wanted me to do.

The Burns Team placed a screen in front of Steve to shield his view from what they were doing and once Steve was ready they began to remove the dressings he had on his legs and buttocks. the nurses spoke to Steve all the way through the dressing change and also made sure I was ok. Steve was very brave given the circumstances and I kept him occupied by encouraging him and talking to him throughout.

Once his legs and buttocks had been redressed the Burns Team gave Steve a rest before commencing to do the dressings on his arms and hands. Further pain killers were administered to Steve prior to the work being carried out on him. Once Steve was ready with the screen in place and we were all in position the nurses got to work. All the dressings were removed slowly and gently and the damaged areas were examined and treated. Again the nurses spoke to Steve and me throughout the procedure and I gave encouragement to Steve to help him through the pain of what was going on. Once the nurses were happy with everything redressed Steve and made him comfortable and he had a rest and a small amount of food and drink.

The nurses were fantastic with Steve and were gentle and dedicated in the work they were doing. I cannot praise them highly enough.

What can I say about Steve Morris. Words do not really do justice for what I had to see Steve go through yesterday. A very small part of me wants to get hold of those that put Steve in Hospital and make them stand there and watch and listen to Steve having to go through what he went through, but a large part of me knows that those people do not deserve to be in the presence of such brave Lad like him.

I would like to finish this update not in a solemn tone but in thanking everyone for visiting the Just Giving site and making a donation to the fire fighters charity of which our Steve will benefit. The donations you make no matter how small or large are so very gratefully appreciated. God bless each and every one of you.

Steve was visited today by his mum. Steve's mum has told us that he was awake and talking to her. When she walked into his room Steve smiled and his mum said it was lovely to see him smile so he smiled again and said that was for her. He told his mum he was glad she had come to see him. He asked his mum for custards tarts as he was hungry. The nursing staff informed Steve's mum that he was having more solid food and he had been eating meatballs for breakfast!! so tomorrow its custard tarts for lunch!!!!

Steve is lay more on his side now to try and make things more comfortable for him which appears to be working. The tube into his throat has been removed so he is breathing completely for himself now. Steve had his 12th visit to theatre yesterday. Whilst there he had a complete dressings change and his grafts were checked. All looks ok with the registrar telling us that the healing process was very encouraging.

The nursing Staff have placed a television in Steve's room to help stimulate his senses and give him some background noise. Steve told his mum that he had been watching the Olympics which he had enjoyed. This is all very encouraging for us a family and demonstrates Steve's continuing recovery.

Steve's mum left him with Steve telling her he needed custard tarts. So it was trip to a well known supermarket to purchase those all important tarts.

We are visiting Steve again later today. He has had not too bad of a weekend. He has been restless but that is understandable due to position he is currently lying in which is on his front with his arms raised out in front of him. The areas of burns are still bandaged as you would expect, but the skin grafts he has had done recently on the back of his legs seem to be healing well at this stage. Steve was in a certain amount of pain immediately following this grafting and so has been placed on some very strong medication to ease the pain and ease the discomfort he is feeling having to lie on his front. He has to remain in this position for approx five days. Currently due to the medication Steve is not very lucid and is slipping in and out of consciousness. He has spoken to his partner Pauline and his Mum Joan this weekend but only a few words.

It has been reported in the media that Steve is back on his feet. We really wish that was the case. Unfortunately this information is not correct. We think somewhere along the line a message has been given out and not fully understood. Its no one's fault, we know everyone out there wants Steve to be well and back on his feet and one day he will. I've given Steve a direct order to get well and at the time he smiled and said "ok Boss". So bear with him. He's a tough guy and he will be walking out of that hospital in the future.

Steve has had further skin grafts today at the top rear of both legs. When we saw him this afternoon he was lay on his front a position he has to be in for 48 hours. Following which if his grafts are healing well he will be placed back on his back. Steve only spoke briefly today due to him having pain relieving medication administered to him. He was drowsy and we left him to get some well earned rest following yet another trip to theatre.

Pauline, Steve's partner, spent time with Steve this afternoon. Steve was conscious but weak. Pauline has been informed by the Burns Team that Steve is going into the operating theatre tomorrow to have further skin grafting to the rear of both is legs and the base of his buttocks. This grafting is required to build on the work already carried out in these areas by the Burns Team. Following this surgical work Steve will be lay on his front once again but hopefully only for a short period of time as it is uncomfortable for him to be lay in this position.

He is still being fed via a tube through his nose and into his stomach although he is now also being fed small amounts of semi solid foods. Once he is stronger and more able to digest solid foods his food intake via mouth will be increased.

Steve due to having his various medications reduced is experiencing withdrawal symptoms which cause him to become restless and agitated. This is part of the process of recovery but it is still difficult to deal with for the family seeing and listening to Steve. We can only offer words of support for Steve and to be with him as much as he wants us to.
Pauline told Steve today about the family visiting Bolton Wanderers football club along with Firefighters from Green Watch Bolton and Farnworth, and meeting the first team players. He smiled and said "it's alright for some".

I'd like to finish this update with information given to me by Pauline tonight. Whilst Pauline was visiting Steve today a nurse asked Pauline to come out of Steve's room. Pauline went into the corridor and the nurse introduced her to an elderly lady and an elderly man. The couple spoke to Pauline about their son who had been rescued a while ago from a fire by Manchester firefighters but had suffered severe burns like Steve. The couple went on to say how brave they thought Steve and all the other firefighters were. They told Pauline their son was much better and the burns centre nursing staff were the best in the world. The couple said it was the actions of the firefighters on the night that saved their sons life and that they were sorry but they could not make the family day this Saturday. Having said that they handed Pauline an envelope saying they wanted to make a contribution towards the fire fighters fund. They then left. Pauline opened the envelope in Steve's room with Steve to find it contained £100 and a letter of sympathy and encouragement for Steve and his family. Pauline told me she was taken aback by the amount and felt very humbled by the contents of the letter.

We saw Steve this afternoon. He still has his own room but is no longer on individual monitoring by the nursing staff. Today Steve has had two sessions of physio using the specialist equipment within the burns centre. The session involves Steve's joints and muscle groups being put through their paces by the physio staff who push and motivate Steve to complete various exercises.
Another mile stone reached today by Steve is he had his first taste of proper food for several weeks. He was fed a small portion of mashed potatoes and a drink of Vimto. That again shows is recovery is continuing and his commitment to his own recovery because I know he does not like mashed potatoes and would not usually go near them!

We left him as he was drifting into sleep. He was tired from the physical activity he had been through with the physio.

Steve now is off any assisted breathing equipment. He is being administered a mild antibiotic to combat infections. In the near future he will be placed on medication to assist further with his recovery. This medication will help him to relax and ease any tension he may be feeling.
Tomorrow he will be having his dressings changed and his skin grafts checked.

Steve has been in to theatre today to have his hands examined and to have his dressings changed along with the vacuum therapy gloves. Unfortunately Steve will in the near future lose all his fingers and both thumbs in varying places. This is due to the amount of damaged caused to both his hands by the fire on the night of the incident. Steve does not yet know the full extent of his injuries but he is being spoken to by the medical staff regarding this issue and they will tell him in a sensitive way.

His recovery overall is going well. All his skin grafts are healing well including his ears. He has been moved from the ICU today following his surgery to a room which is still within the burns centre but is classed as a less critical area. He was tired when we saw him and so we only spent a short while at his bedside. He was being administered oxygen but this was only to assist him post surgery.

We spent some time with the psychologist today. This was to talk through how we as family will be able to assist Steve along his road to recovery given the injuries he has sustained. We found this very beneficial and it has helped us to focus on what is important and how to help Steve once he knows the extent of his injuries.

Steve's recovery is continuing to go well. As a family we spent about 2 hours with him today. He is more alert and able to communicate although he still gets tired and has to rest between talking and listening. I told Steve about the events which are occurring in the near future like the visit by the family to BWFC, the Station Open Day, the fund raiser at the Jolly Carter Pub in Little Lever and the Fund raiser being organised by A Watch in Control. He was smiling all the time and I think he was amazed by the amount of support he and the fire fighters at Bolton Central are getting from everyone both inside and outside of the Fire Service.

He asked about the guys off his watch and how they were all doing. I told him about the web page Carl had set up for him due to the interest people were showing in his progress. At this time Steve became tired so we did the talking. I told him about how the family was doing and all the support we are getting and giving to each other. Steve then told me he would get better and come home. We left him resting in his room but told him we would be returning to see him tomorrow.

Steve's skin grafts are all healing well including the more recent ones he has had on the front of his thighs. He is now breathing for himself and his temp is around 37/38. He is currently on a mild antibiotic to combat any further infections. His ears are healing well but are still bandaged to protect them from being irritated by his pillow.

His hands are still in the vacuum therapy gloves to assist in tissue growth in his hands. Both his hands especially his fingers will have to have extensive surgery. He has unfortunately lost both his little fingers and part of the palm of his right hand. The Medical Team will be examining all his fingers and both his thumbs to determine what needs to be done in these areas in the near future.

When Steve is able to understand and remember what he is being told the psychology team along with the medical staff will gently and sensitively tell him what has happened to him and the extent of his injuries. They will also discuss with him the way forward for his recovery to continue.

The family are really pleased with his overall progress. Steve is healing well and is now able to see and speak to us more when we are with him. Steve is still very poorly but we know he has the will and the fight to recover.

Steve is responding to his treatment. He is now more conscious of his surroundings and is starting to recognise the people who are visiting him. He is experiencing certain difficulties whilst he is coming off his medication which we have been made aware of.
Steve is still very poorly but is healing quickly which is a good sign for his overall recovery. A further update will follow within the next 24 hours.