By Keoki Kerr
WFSB
HONOLULU, Hawaii — A 24-year state prison guard who lost both legs because of work-related medical problems has waged a five-year battle to get workers compensation benefits and was shocked when prison officials told him to return to a new job last month.
Patrick Hamlow, 54, uses a wheelchair to get around his Kalihi apartment because he lost both legs.
It all started five years ago this summer at Halawa Prison when the veteran guard had to walk through a prison unit flooded with raw sewage to turn off the sewer line. He said inmates had purposely clogged toilets in the special holding unit where he was temporarily assigned to sergeant duty that day so he went in through the sewage spill to shut off the sewer lines near several prison cells.
Full story: Prison guard who lost 2 legs because of work-related infection fights 5 years for benefits