From tragedy to triumph: The inspiring story of a spinal cord injury patient

Muhammed Dalhatu’s life took a dramatic turn after a tragic road accident that left him partially paralysed from his legs down. Despite the challenges as a Spinal Cord Injury Patient (SCI), the 37-year-old has not given up on his dreams. Instead, his ingenuity has manifested in his innovative ideas, creating a successful business that has seen him empower more than 250 youths in skills in Nigeria, Ghana, and Cameroon. As one of our Unsung Heroes, Daily Trust explored Dalhatu’s journey from tragedy to triumph and the impact he has made on his immediate community.

From innovative ideas such as the bucket heater, rechargeable fans and charcoal briquettes, his ideas have not only sustained his life but have also contributed to environmental sustainability. Muhammad Dalhatu’s resilience and determination is one that can inspire others to strive for success despite the challenges they may face.

Born in Yola, Adamawa State, Dalhatu attended Wuro Hausa Primary School and completed his secondary education at the same institution. He then enrolled at Modibbo Adama University, Yola, where he studied Educational Management and Planning.

However, tragedy struck in his 300-level due to a car accident on December 25th, 2016. The accident in Gombe State left him partially paralysed from his waist down. After almost three weeks at the Gombe Teaching Hospital, doctors were unable to make a proper diagnosis due to a malfunctioning MRI machine and printers. Dalhatu was then transferred to Federal Medical Centre Yola, now Modibbo Adama University Teaching Hospital where he received further treatment.

• Woman arrested for allegedly stealing 7-day-old baby in Nasarawa
• Pro-democracy activists demand probe into banditry sponsorship

“As at 2016, Yola FMC had no MRI machine, and so we were advised to seek treatment either in Kano or Zaria,” he said. However, when the family received a call that the machine at Gombe Teaching Hospital was functional, Dalhatu’s father, who worked as a driver at the Federal College of Education, Yola, arranged for an ambulance to return his son to Gombe.

There, the results of the MRI revealed that the 37-year-old had a fracture on his back and a broken spinal cord. Heartbroken, the family sought medical advice and were asked to seek treatment at Dala Teaching Hospital in Kano.

He told this reporter that after making enquiries, they were told the surgery could cost N1.6m, with an additional N900, 000 for medication and other miscellaneous expenses. Before the accident, he had worked with a private organisation, which paid his full salary for the first three months but eventually cut it down to half and later terminated his appointment.

“Unfortunately, I had N150, 000 in my account at the time of the accident, which I had intended to use to buy clothes for my upcoming wedding that was scheduled to take place three months before the accident.” Unfortunately, the family of his fiancé called off the wedding.

Though he said his pressing concern at that time was his recovery, there came another challenge. His father had been convinced by many people that his son would not survive the spinal surgery and so made the decision to halt all medical trips. But three months after the accident, Dalhatu experienced a blockage in his bladder and he drifted into unconsciousness for over 10 hours.

He was rushed to the hospital and another surgery was performed. “During this time, I was unable to sit up and required assistance to turn my body,” he said. Upon his discharge from the hospital Dalhatu asked his father about the main surgery that was needed to correct his spinal cord injury, but his father told him that the idea could not be pursued, as his survival chances were slim.

He said he pleaded with his father and expressed anguish that he didn’t want to live the rest of his life being a burden to anyone. After convincing his father, he sold the house he had earlier built to live with his prospective wife and sought support from friends who raised funds for his surgery through social media. With the numerous donations, he travelled to India for the surgery.

The 37-year-old narrated how three days after the surgery in India, he started to use a wheelchair and within two weeks, he was able to sit on his own. After another week, he was able to transfer himself from a wheelchair to his seat, bed, and car.

Muhammad Dalhatu returned to Nigeria a month after the surgery to continue physiotherapy for two months at FMC Yola. As his treatments progressed, he was able to stand for an hour or two with the help of a walker.

For someone who was his family’s sole breadwinner, the accident made Dalhatu completely dependent on his parents. However, in order to become self-reliant, he tried various business ventures but eventually came up with an idea to create a bucket heater to help SCI patients during the cold season. Using an old heater he placed inside a bucket, it allowed him to boil water quickly and efficiently. He then went on Google and YouTube to learn more about heater innovation and began putting his newfound knowledge into practice.

His first innovation, a bucket heater, could boil 20 litres of water within 20 to 25 minutes. He then included an indicator that would turn off the heater once the water reached 100 degrees Celsius. With this, Muhammed Dalhatu was able to sell more than 2000 pieces, generating a significant income for himself. He used the money from the innovation to return to school and complete his degree programme in Educational Management and Planning and in 2020, graduated with a second class upper.

He also had a second chance at love during his final year when he met a lady whom he dated and eventually married in 2022. Realising that his bucket heater was seasonal, Dalhatu came up with the idea of a rechargeable fan. He made each material himself and designed it to charge with 5 volts. Based on demonstration, this reporter observed that once plugged in, the fan showed a red light indication and could charge for four hours before fully charging by a green light indication. “The fan is designed to work for up to 12 hours,” he said.

His third innovation came about when the Governor of Adamawa State, Umaru Fintiri banned the felling of trees. Muhammed Dalhatu then came up with the charcoal briquettes from sawdust, maize dust, and rice shafts. He expressed delight that his charcoal briquettes “Can last longer than regular charcoal and are more environmentally friendly.”

Dalhatu’s innovative ideas have not only made him self-reliant but have also contributed to the community’s environmental sustainability. His fourth innovation is a water cooker, which is designed to use a combination of water and petrol.

While demonstrating this, he placed the petrol and water in the same container, with the petrol sitting on top of the water due to its heavier weight. Using a device he created with a blower, he blows air into the container through a hose that goes to the burner to create a flame for cooking.

However, in response to concerns about the use of petroleum, he came up with another device called the condemned oil cooker that uses condemned black oil to create blue flame for cooking which can accommodate larger pots.

Muhammad Dalhatu has also empowered and provided opportunities for more than 250 people, especially teenagers and youth in Nigeria, Ghana, and Cameroon virtually through Tiktok. He keeps in contact with his beneficiaries and says he is thrilled to see their progress. “Many of them have opened their own briquette companies, and I have been invited to Keffi (Nasarawa State) to install a briquette machine and train others on how to use it,” he said.

Mr. Nelson Edisson, a beneficiary of Dalhatu’s coaching, has now opened a briquette factory and warehouse, which produces 10 tonnes of briquettes per day, their maximum capacity.

Edisson, whose company TVCN Briquettes, is located in Keffi, Nasarawa State, told Daily Trust that he received physical training from Dalhatu when he visited their factory in Keffi for three days. This he said enabled the company to produce its own briquettes instead of relying on other manufacturers.

He added that before the training, they had relied on briquettes from other manufacturers, especially in Kogi State but said with Dalhatu’s training they now produce their briquettes using locally available materials. He however said they face difficulties during the rainy season when the production is mostly low due to the unavailability of raw materials. “Despite his condition, Mr Dalhatu has come up with many innovative ideas that have helped improve our business,” he said.

Muhammed Dalhatu’s life has changed significantly since the accident. He is however grateful for what he has achieved. Although he cannot walk, he believes that he can do anything he sets his mind to.

He says his biggest challenge is the negative attitude of people who do not know his capabilities. His message to people with disabilities is to remain resilient and he encourages them to think creatively and find ways to contribute to their society rather than begging on the streets. He wants them to know that there is always hope and that they should never give up.

“I want to show others that disability is not inability,” Dalhatu emphasized and stressed that: “We can create opportunities and make a difference.”

He also wants the government to do more to support people with special needs to become more self-sufficient and contribute more to society. “We need equal opportunities and access to resources,” he said, adding that: “Empowering people with disabilities will benefit society as a whole.”