Austin Hunter was a happy, active 12-year-old boy who lived life to the full.
A keen sportsman, he loved nothing more than being outside, getting stuck in – until, out of nowhere, his world changed after developing sepsis.
In June 2024, Austin developed severe leg pain, fatigue and a fever. His parents, Warwick and Holly, initially assumed it was down to overexertion as Austin had just completed a three-day sports camp and was known for pushing through discomfort. But when his pain worsened, his heart raced through the night, and his fingers and toes began to turn purple, they rushed him to A&E.
Austin walked into hospital under his own steam, but within hours he had deteriorated rapidly. He was diagnosed with sepsis, caused by Invasive Group A Streptococcus (Strep A). Doctors acted fast. He was placed in an induced coma and transferred to intensive care at the Evelina London Children’s Hospital, where he remained for weeks as the infection caused multiple organ failure.
Warwick recalled: “We were told that he may not survive… kissing him goodbye, knowing that that might be the last time you ever see him was an incredibly difficult thing to do.”
Ultimately, Warwick credits his son’s fitness with keeping him alive. “Without that real underlying base fitness level – heart capacity, lung capacity – I just can’t see how he would have survived.”
Austin survived the night. But the road ahead was long. Austin remained in hospital for months, facing unimaginable challenges with courage far beyond his years. The sepsis had caused devastating damage to his limbs. In August 2024, he underwent his first leg amputation.
Warwick recalled the moment Austin told his younger sister Georgina about his leg amputation: “Watching our 12-year-old son explain to our 10-year-old daughter why he was going to lose his leg, and do it with such compassion – that’s something we’ll never forget.”
Austin said: “I said to my dad, I want it to come from me because then I know that she knows that I’m not afraid to tell her, and that I’m not scared of it happening.”
Throughout his treatment, Austin endured multiple surgeries, a second bout of sepsis, and intensive wound care.
“The worst one was where I had to do cares, which was where I’d have to roll on to my side and they’d rub my whole body in Vaseline and pop the blisters one by one. And that was painful. We had to do that six times a day,” he said.
But throughout, he remained remarkably upbeat – with his best friend Jude coming to visit him in hospital, watching the Paralympics and football on TV.
“We had a system where we had a whiteboard and we wrote for 50 days on the bottom, and we’d either have a circle or a cross – circle for a good day, cross for a bad day. And we just knew that every time we either did the circle or cross, we were one day closer to being home,” Warwick explained.
In the months that followed, his medical team tried everything to save his right foot but in early 2025, Austin made the decision himself to become a double amputee.
“I said to myself that I think I know that I’ll have a better chance by doing the amputation and having good prosthetic than keeping it and having a bad foot,” Austin said.
Ten months after his ordeal began, Austin finally returned home with his parents, sister Georgina, and their dog Lexi – reunited under one roof.
In March 2025, Austin spoke at the Sepsis Savvy Walk to help raise awareness of the condition. He’s since launched austinspowers.com, a fundraising and awareness platform that aims to support the charities that helped save his life, including the Evelina and Ronald McDonald House. Warwick is hoping to run the London Marathon in 2026, as well.
“We’re just trying to raise money for the Evelina and Ronald McDonald, where my mum and dad stayed whilst I was in hospital. But then we also want to raise it for things that I might need – so prosthetics or a new wheelchair. It’s just putting that money towards something that I would benefit from a lot easier if I had it and also giving the money to people who have helped me and who have kept me being alive,” Austin said.
His take-away message for others in a similar position to him? “Always look at the positives. Yes, you might have down days, but if you have two weeks and you only have three bad days, you’ve actually had 11 good days. So always look and try and be positive, no matter what you do.”
And for parents, Warwick added: “There’s no such thing as a stupid question. Don’t feel like you’re putting anybody out. If you’re worried, absolutely go to A&E and absolutely ask, ‘Could this be sepsis?’ Because if that wasn’t diagnosed quickly and acted on, he wouldn’t be here.”
Austin is now awaiting his first set of prosthetic legs and already planning his return to sport. Having met elite para-athletes like Billy Monger and Greg Searle, he knows the road ahead will be tough, but believes the future is full of possibility.
“I’ve still got my friends. I’ve still got my family. I’ve still got my life. It’s not about what you’ve lost – it’s about what you do with what you’ve got,” he said.
