'If I stayed, I would die' - Tipton veteran relives moment he was set on fire by petrol bomb in Iraq before he takes on 300-mile Arctic Expedition

It was exactly 20 years ago when a petrol bomb attack was launched at Karl's tank during deployment in Basra, Iraq, in 2005, leaving the hero with 37 per cent burns across his body then spending 10 days in an induced coma. 

The devastating moment it happened 'felt like a lifetime' according to Karl, 38, who had to fight his way out of the tank through flames and plumes of smoke before being able to get help.

The dad-of-one  spent time in hospital recovering, re-learning how to walk and having skin grafts before being able to get back to a type of normality following the ordeal. 

But in what could have been more than enough reason to opt for a quiet and comfortable life, it was the last thing on Karl's mind who just 16 months later was training to run a marathon and then went on to win a silver medal in the 1500m at the Invictus Games. He was also awarded the Military Cross. 

Not forgetting the time he also attempted to climb Mount Everest - stopped only by a potential avalanche due to unusually warm conditions. 

Now married and living in Tipton - and having served as an infantryman man with the Staffordshire regiment - he has raised close to £1million for a mixture of charities over the last 20 years, and now has his eyes set on a new challenge, which will kick off in March. 

The Arctic Expedition is a 300 mile unsupported journey through snow and ice in Lapland, Sweden, with help available which even at its earliest would take days to get to him if there was a problem.