Aussie man in coma after Bali motorbike crash set to be flown home
A Queensland man who has suffered horrific injuries in a motorcycle accident in Bali is set to be flown back to Australia.
Erran Braddick, from Mackay, was left in a coma with 14 broken ribs, bone fragments in his lungs and a blood clot on his brain, his sister wrote on a GoFundMe page.
Mr Braddick, 32, was due to be flown home by LifeFlight on Thursday morning (local time), but a spokesperson confirmed to Yahoo News Australia they have encountered delays leaving Bali.
Despite being unable to confirm when the flight would depart, LifeFlight insisted they were working to get him home as soon as possible.
“LifeFlight’s Critical Care Doctor and Flight Nurse have met with the patient’s doctors in Bali and will continue to monitor and assess his condition, until he can be safely airlifted home to Australia,” a LifeFlight statement read.
A team consisting of two pilots, a critical care doctor and a flight nurse landed in Denpasar on Wednesday night and travelled to BIMC Hospital in Kuta to assess Mr Braddick.
“The Challenger 604 Jet is the longest-range Air Ambulance in Australia, so is the only one able to fly to Bali non-stop,” LifeFlight’s Air Ambulance Executive Manager Tim Healee said.
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Once they are able to depart, Mr Braddick will be flown directly to Brisbane.
Mr Braddick’s sister, Danielle, said expenses were already piling up as a result of her brother’s round-the-clock care.
“Our goal is to get him back onto Australian soil as costs for him to remain at a hospital in Kuta are astronomical,” she wrote on the GoFundMe page.
The crowdfunding page has raised more than $38,000 of the $50,000 goal in just three days.
Mr Braddick’s mother remains by his bed side, writing yesterday to thank her family and friends for their support.
“We are in the tiny baby step forward process in each part of his recovery at the moment, but each baby step brings us closer to bringing him home,” Rayleen Braddick wrote.
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