A soldier left ‘almost unintelligible’ by a severe stammer after he was nearly frozen on duty is suing the Ministry of Defence for £860,000 compensation.
Chileshe Mawamba (31), a former Queen’s Guardsman, was stationed in Estonia during the winter 2017 where he was exposed to extremely cold temperatures.
He was left with a non-freezing-cold injury that would last a lifetime and also PTSD. His speech is slurred by lawyers, which makes him difficult to understand.
The armoured vehicle engineer, from Derby, is now suing the MoD at the High Court for £860,000 due to the effect on his personal life and work.
Part of his claim is £400,000 for the loss of future earnings due to the effect his speech impediment has on his employability.
Chileshe Mwamba, 31, is suing the MoD at the High Court for £860,000 due to the an extreme stammer he says was caused by deployment in Estonia on his personal life and work
The British Army’s Royal Welsh Regiment soldiers stand in front of the Warrior armored fighting vehicle they purchased near Tapa, Estonia.
Gurion Tausig, Gurion’s barrister at the court said that his stammer makes it difficult to communicate with others.
As a child, he suffered from mild stammering. However, the trauma of the cold and the subsequent exacerbations made the situation’very worse’.
He said that he was ‘actually fluent’ and had been rendered ‘almost unintelligible by his work colleagues.
“This has had a major impact on Mr Mwamba’s lifestyle, and it affects his employment prospects,” he stated.
NFCI can be caused by prolonged exposure to cold or wet conditions. However, it is not the same as frostbite. It is caused tissue cooling but not freezing.
Although the MoD admitted Mr Mwamba to some of the non-freezing injuries he sustained, they did not admit his impairments.
He must prove that his injuries and losses were fully covered at the High Court trial in January next year.
Andrew Ward, a MoD lawyer, said that NFCI isn’t admitted to cause an exacerbation or pre-existing dysfluency.
The claimant has to prove the fact.
Mwamba, an ex-Queen’s guardsman, was sent to Estonia in 2017 for extreme cold weather. His traumatic experience left him with an ‘nonfreezing cold injury’ that has since caused him PTSD. Lawyers also claim that he now speaks in a way that is difficult to comprehend.
Ross Kemp and Mr Mwamba. Although the MoD admits liability for Mr Mwamba’s non-freezing injuries, it does not acknowledge his disability.
Mwamba, who joined the British Army in 2009, was initially an infantryman/guardsman in Coldstream Guards. These guards provided security for Queen Elizabeth II and other Royals.
Then he joined the Royal Engineers, and was then with the Armoured Engineers Regiment during his deployment to Estonia in November 2017.
British troops arrived in Estonia as part of Operation CABRIT in 2017. This multinational effort was made to prevent Russian aggression in Balkans.
Mwamba served in Zambia between November 10th, 2017 and December 3, 2017.
The case was brought to court by the plaintiff for a preliminary hearing. This hearing dealt with what type of evidence would be used in the trial.
A speech-language therapist was called to testify about the treatment benefits for Mr Mwamba’s stammer.
This trial is scheduled to occur between June and Oct next year.