Couple's holiday horror as man falls seriously ill on dream trip
![Adam Coard was taken seriously ill on holiday. [Photo: Tash Coard]](https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/FciCjdEsf0dEnll_7AB_xw--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD02Nzc-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/homerun/feed_manager_auto_publish_494/7b4ef6e3d59832bc594031ac521e3e1c)
An Australian couple’s dream anniversary trip turned into a nightmare after a man fell seriously ill and was left paralysed in an interstate hospital.
The father-of-two was diagnosed with a rare nerve illness and now his family are desperately raising the $65,000 (£36,631) needed to fly him home.
Adam and Kate Coard, from Brisbane in Australia, were celebrating their 25th wedding anniversary with a relaxing week-long trip to Perth, when tragedy struck.
Only three days into their trip, 47-year-old Mr Coard was rushed to the Royal Perth Hospital with cellulitis in his leg and two bacterial infections on October 11.
Just two weeks later, Mr Coard was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome, a rare nerve condition which left him paralysed.
“It was heartbreaking to see,” his daughter Tash Coard told Yahoo7.
“My mother had to leave after a week, she needed to go back to work because we needed the money to pay for bills.”
When Mr Coard was released from the Intensive Care Unit, the hospital decided against sending him home to Brisbane, as the flight would have cost $65,000 (£36,631), Ms Coard said.
Mr Coard remains in the Royal Perth Hospital, is unable to walk and has only 60 per cent use of his left arm.
Desperate to see her father, Ms Coard started a GoFundMe page to raise money to fly her Dad home to Brisbane.
“We all felt very useless because he was so far away and there was nothing we could do,” Ms Coard said.
“We couldn’t even be there for him in company. My mum misses her husband so much, and she’s one of the strongest people I’ve ever met.
“I can tell she just either wants to crumble or wants to be there the entire time and she can’t.”
Ms Coard said doing the fundraiser and contacting people about the family’s situation had helped her to feel a bit better.
“Until a couple of days ago, I was honestly a wreck, but the last couple of days I’ve picked up,” she said.
Ms Coard hopes that the family can raise enough money to fly Adam home.
“It would be a miracle,” she said. “It would change everything.”
The GoFundMe page has raised over $10,000 of the $65,000 goal.
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