It was nearly seven years ago when the touring bus of the Polish death metal quartet Decapitated collided with a logging truck on a forest-lined roadway near the Belarus-Russia border. As many admirers of metal music are familiar, the tragedy claimed the life of 23-year-old Witold ‘Vitek’ Kiełtyka, the band’s original drummer and the younger brother to guitarist Wacław ‘Vogg’ Kiełtyka.
The accident also caused severe, but non-life-threatening, injuries to the band’s vocalist Adrian ‘Covan’ Kowanek, who, after complications from the surgery, soon became unresponsive and entirely dependent of those around him.
With the recent release of Decapitated’s sixth full-length album, Blood Mantra, The Metal Observer found it an ideal time to recast a light on Adrian and his continued rehabilitation.
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Immediately after the accident Witold ‘Vitek’ Kiełtyka was hurried to a Russian hospital where he would eventually lose his life four days later on November 2nd of 2007. Adrian was transported to the University Hospital in Krakow, Poland, awaiting surgery for nearly a week in an intensive care unit. Although he also suffered serious head trauma, his eight-hour surgery initially proved a success. Within 24 hours he was responding to doctor requests like walking and talking.
Thirty-six hours later, however, things took a turn for the worse.
In the early hours of the morning, and with no one attending his bedside, Adrian began to experience breathing problems. When hospital staff became cognizant of the situation Adrian was quickly placed into an induced coma. With the severe lack of an oxygen supply, Adrian soon suffered both cardiac arrest and cerebral hypoxia, an impairment that results in the pronounced depletion of oxygenated blood to the brain, which, in the more extreme cases, can result in a catatonic state.
Seven years later and Adrian remains uniformly disabled, restricted to his bed and the daily routines of his ongoing recovery; tasks that require full and tireless assistance from his family and nursing staff.
Adrian’s family believe his post-surgery oxygen obstruction and his subsequent physical deterioration were the result of profound medical negligence. The Kowaneks issued a court case against the hospital where their son was treated.
“The case takes time. Six years already,” said Leszek Kowanek, Adrian’s father. “Each time a positive report is addressed on our behalf from specialists, the hospital calls for more, and the court is obligated to ask for new reports. We remain positive that the court will approve of a temporary pension to be paid for by the hospital.”
As it’s far too expensive for Adrian to be committed permanently to a hospital, the Kowaneks have transformed Adrian’s old recording studio into his treatment room, fit with a bath and exercise equipment. Additionally, the family purchased a car with a special lift, a feature designed to help ease Adrian’s transport when he needs to visit outside clinics and medical centers, such as the rehabilitation clinic in Krakow that Adrian visits every Thursday.
An article clipping from the Gazeta Krakowska featuring Adrian and his mother, Ewa. The headline is entitled “Adrian Will Sing Again.”
Determined to bring their son back to his normal self, the Kowaneks are exhausting every possible option, seeking the help of both the spiritual and scientific fields.
“Many people have engaged in Adrian’s physiotherapy during these seven years,” said Leszek, who mentioned that Adrian presently requires two full-time nurses. “We have had six bioenergy therapists, more than 10 physiotherapists, two massage specialists, acupuncturists, two acupressure professionals, a Catholic priest, Tibetan monks, and then even many of Adrian’s friends who wished to help.”
Adrian on his 30th birthday with his friends from the band Thy Disease.
The entire ordeal has left a considerable strain on the Kowanek’s finances and their emotional stability.
“Our family has been undergoing psychological treatment for a year now,” Leszek said. “It’s extremely hard to work day and night. Our professional life is over.”
Owning a small private enterprise, Leszek still manages to work when he can, but his wife, Ewa, was forced to leave her accounting position five years back. Their daughter Paulina, after having graduated with an engineering degree from Krakow Polytechnic whilst taking care of her brother, has moved to Canada in hopes of finding some semblance of rest, or as Leszek stated, “a way to rebuild her mind.”
Thanks to stipends from the government, Leszek and Ewa are still able to make due, and the six years Adrian spent working with his father also grants the family some extra income. Tax time yields additional relief, as do funds given to Adrian from “Against the Odds,” a charity organization set up by the famous Polish actress and philanthropist, Anna Dymna.
Still, the obstacles are never-ending for the Kowanek family.
Three years back the family’s hopes were at a zenith when they successfully scheduled Adrian to undergo specialized cell treatment at a clinic in Germany. When they received word that the German government had closed the clinic, they were forced to seek elsewhere, eventually scheduling an appointment with a cell treatment clinic in China. Unfortunately, the Chinese government also intervened and forced the clinic to close last year.
But now the Kowaneks have a new plan, and they need all the help they can get.
“We would like to purchase a hyperbaric chamber,” Leszek stated. “This project is very costly and without the help from a donation program it won’t have a chance to be successful. Thankfully, a portion of this money has already been collected when we had planned for the cell treatment.”
If you would like to help the Kowanek family, you can contribute money to Adrian’s new recovery project by contacting Leszek Kowanek directly at his email: intech2@interia.pl. And if you haven’t already, join Covan’s cause by heading over to http://www.wakeupcovan.com/ or by visiting the Facebook page here.
With Adrian’s birthday (October 4th) on the horizon, your donation would prove a most worthwhile and special present.
“I would like to thank all the people who have supported Adrian with their donations or by sending kind e-mails, and also to the friends who continue to keep Adrian in their thoughts and ask for progress reports,” Leszek concluded. “And a special thanks to Wacław (Vogg) Kiełtyka, the leader of Decapitated, who is always thinking of Adrian, whether through his support by attending charity concerts or by simply visiting Adrian when he can.”
Adrian with Wacław ‘Vogg’ Kiełtyka and his friend Marcin.
