A SECURITY guard who was attacked and thrown down a flight of stairs says no one should be subjected to such violence while doing their job.
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Mathew Rivett, 27, left hospital yesterday after being assaulted at The Bended Elbow on Sunday night.
He suffered cracked ribs, a collapsed lung and a fractured eye socket in the attack.
He was punched, and kneed before being thrown down the stairs at One Nightclub.
Mr Rivett said he hoped sharing his story would stop others being attacked.
He vowed to return to his job once healed.
“I’ve been verbally assaulted a lot, I’ve been punched before, but nothing like that,” he said.
“I’ve never been assaulted to the point where I could have died if it was any worse.
“There was definitely the possibility that if I hadn’t have been treated so quickly or if the fall had been any worse, I could have died.
“I feel a lot more fragile than before.
“I definitely take mobility and my health a lot more seriously now.”
Mr Rivett spent yesterday recovering at home and is still about a month away from returning to work.
It will be some time before he knows whether he has long-term effects from his injuries. He said he had no feeling in parts of his body.
“I know I’m in a more dangerous job than most, but I still think I should be able to go to work, and if I act reasonably, I should be able to deal with patrons,” he said.
“This kind of thing happens too often.
“I’m angry with the guy who did it, but being angry and hating doesn’t get you anywhere.
“I want him to be charged and I want him to get a fine or a few weeks in jail.”
Mr Rivett said he was “overwhelmed” by plans to hold a fund-raiser for him at the venue, and he was grateful to the pub’s employees who had helped him during the incident.
“There were a fair few bar staff — especially one who I won’t name — who helped me when I was panicking when I was lying and waiting for paramedics to come,” he said.
“I don’t blame the Bended Elbow or One, I just blame the guy that did it and his brother.”