There were actually two young women who famously suffered life-changing injuries in the Smiler roller coaster crash at Alton Towers on June 2, 2015: Leah Washington and Vicky Balch. Both women were in the front row of the ride when it collided with a stationary test carriage. Leah Washington, who was 17 at the time, had her left leg amputated above the knee. Vicky Balch, then 20, also eventually underwent a leg amputation due to the severity of her injuries. Their boyfriends, Joe Pugh and Daniel Thorpe, were also seriously injured. The accident was found to be caused by human error after staff overrode a safety system. In the years since, both Leah and Vicky have become prominent advocates for disability awareness, often sharing their recovery journeys and the impact of the multi-million pound compensation settlement from Merlin Entertainments.