Construction worker struggling after injury

Enrique Bustamante takes a break from his walk at the park with his faithful companion, Brianna.

“I was working construction, and we were moving this 49-foot-long, 26-inch-diameter pipe into place. It slid over like butter on a hot pan and, boom, it hit my knee and rolled onto my leg. I tried and tried to push it off, but my leg and foot were trapped. I kept screaming, ‘pull my leg, pull my leg.’ Finally, they were able to move it just enough to get me out.

“I ended up having surgery on my knee. Then I had a blood clot, and they had to remove a hematoma. My hip, my back and my shoulder also have been messed up.

“It happened in 2013. I have not worked since then. It’s been really hard. I had been working about 50 hours a week and making good money, so we’ve had to use all our savings to keep up with the bills. Plus, my wife had breast cancer, and now she’s having thyroid problems. We’re waiting on a call from the doctor to see what’s next.”

Do you think you’ll ever be healthy enough to return to work?
“I have to. I’m getting sick and tired of just being around the house with all these problems. I’m ready for them to give me an injection or something, so I can get a release to go back to work.”

— Enrique Bustamante