Thread: County Down man may never walk again after Thailand biking accident

Sait Can Ozdemir's family are now facing a £45,000 bill to get him home for treatment

COMMENTS
By Andrew Madden
21:28, 9 DEC 2017

Sait Can's family now face a £45,000 medical transport bill to get him back home.

A man from Co Down is facing the possibility that he may never walk again after being involved in a horrific biking accident in Thailand.

Sait Can Ozdemir's family are now facing a £45,000 bill to get him home for treatment and are asking the public for help.

Sait Can, who moved from Turkey to Ballymartin when he was just a few months old, was in the country as part of a round-the-world trip with friends when tragedy struck.



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On Wednesday, the 26-year-old laboratory worker rented bicycles with two friends to explore Chang Mai, a province in the north of the country where they were staying.

Going down a steep hill, Sait Can lost control of his bike and fell into a two-foot ditch.

Luckily, his friends found him seconds after the fall and, miraculously, an ex-paramedic happened to be nearby to deliver first aid.

He had lost consciousness for several minutes and emergency services were promptly called.

Sait Can was transported to Maharaj Nakorn Chiang Mai hospital, where he underwent a CT Scan, an MRI and several x-rays.

Doctors found he had suffered a broken wrist, a punctured lung, fluid in his lungs and at least one broken vertebrae in his back.

Sait Can Ozdemir was on holiday in Thailand when tragedy struck.

Surgeons said the broken vertebrae had damaged Sait Can's spinal cord and there is only a small chance he may be able to walk again.

On Saturday, he underwent spinal surgery and surgeons discovered he had broken not one but three vertebrae, almost severing his spinal cord.

Thankfully, doctors were able to stabilise his spine, however it is still unclear if his ability to walk has been saved.

Speaking to Belfast Live, Sait Can's sister, Vicky, 32, said her brother's insurance will just about cover his Thai hospital bills, but not the specialist medical transport to get him home.

She said: "When we first heard about the accident, all we wanted to do was get him home.

"But, unfortunately, my brother bought his travel insurance in Turkey and it only covers €30,000 in medical expenses.

"The lowest quote we could get for the proper transport to bring him home was £45,000, so we're desperately asking if anyone can help, no matter how small, please help us get him home.

"It's a strange situation to be in, Sait Can is just the most thoughtful guy you could ever meet, he would go out of the way to help anyone and would literally give you the shirt off his back. So we're hoping people can help him now."

Vicky and her parents live in Turkey, while Sait Can's younger brother, Kemal, 23, is in Ireland.

Both brothers studied at Shimna Integrated College in Newcastle and Sait Can went on to study biology at Queen's.

His mother, who is originally from Co Down, has been able to travel to Thailand to be by her son's bed.

Speaking from his home in Ballymartin, Kemal said the situation has been much more difficult because of the family's spread-out geography and how far his brother was away from home when he was injured.

He said: "It's been absolutely hectic, just trying to co-ordinate everything and get everything organised. Thankfully, family and friends have been incredibly supportive and are doing anything they can to help.

"For me it has been really strange to know my brother is lying in hospital, severely injured and might never walk again.

"Because, you know, he's my big brother and to me he is invincible. He's always the one that's looked out for me and is the strong and brave one, it's been really hard to comprehend."

Sait Can's family have set up a Go Fund Me page in order to raise money to pay for his transport home. To donate, click here . https://www.gofundme.com/get-saitcan-home

Source - Co Down man may never walk again after Thailand biking accident - Belfast Live

Maybe tragic but it sounds like a story from a Nigerian guy living in Nontaburi.

Someone needs to set up one of these Go Fund me websites where the scrounging bastards have to pay back. Call it Go Sub me or Go Fuck Yourself.
Those websites cream 25% of all funds too, if i remember right
Thats a lot of internal injury for falling 2 feet off a bike, they shold check that fluid in his lungs; sounds more like a ladybloke gang rape victim. He does look the sort, a bit like Will Young.

Get well soon

But, unfortunately, my brother bought his travel insurance in Turkey and it only covers €30,000 in medical expenses.

As a foreigner in a thai hospital, that wont get you much in their "lets overprescribe this foreign patient into penury " hospital system.

Neglecting to read the small print will be an oversight he will regret for a long time.

Theres a pic of him on his FB with one of his peers cuddling him . Could have been harmless if he wasnt holding 2 bottles of Sol

Originally Posted by taxexile

Neglecting to read the small print will be an oversight he will regret for a long time.

No such thing as small print these days.

Just open the PDF and read the fooking thing eh.

Make the coont as big as ya want .

Originally Posted by Wilsonandson

Surgeons said the broken vertebrae had damaged Sait Can's spinal cord and there is only a small chance he may be able to walk again.

On Saturday, he underwent spinal surgery and surgeons discovered he had broken not one but three vertebrae, almost severing his spinal cord.

Thankfully, doctors were able to stabilise his spine, however it is still unclear if his ability to walk has been saved

Didnt read that bit at first. Poor fucker. Popping over to that go fund me site to make merit

Originally Posted by taxexile

Neglecting to read the small print will be an oversight he will regret for a long time

His boggest regret will be renting a bike off the Thai and not checking the brakea. That gofundme ispassed halfway already

I had a big motorcycle crash as a teenager, and incurred fractured vertebrae along with serious internal injuries to boot. Absolutely agonising. I'm tempted to think that he was carrying a good pace to do all that damage.
Good luck with the recovery.

Nearly there, looks like a happy ending for this guy. Let's hope he makes a full recovery.

This campaign is trending!

Get Saitcan home
£46,370 of £45,000 goal
Raised by 767 people in 9 days
Donate Now

Story
Updates 9
Update 9
Posted by Vicki Kaya
4 days ago

Sait Can had something to say to all the wonderful people who have donated and shared.


I just wanted to say that my family and I are overwhelmed by the support in light of this accident, and that I can't express in mere words how grateful and humbled I am by all the donations from family and friends alike, that have all contributed towards getting one man closer to familiar shores, towards recuperation and towards his regained strength. Thank you all sincerely from the bottom of our hearts.

Man in horrific Thai bike crash flown back home after friends raise €50k



Sait Can Ozdemir in hospital in Thailand with David Cox, Eamonn McCartan and his mum Christine.

Allan Preston
December 29 2017 11:57 AM

A man facing a battle to walk again after an horrific bicycle crash in Thailand has been flown home to Ireland.

Sait Can Ozdemir (26), a Turkish-born laboratory worker who grew up in Ballymartin, Co Down, fell from his bike on December 6.

He had been exploring in Chiang Mai, a northern province of Thailand, with two school friends.

His devastating injuries included five damaged vertebrae in his back, a severely damaged spinal cord, eight broken ribs, two punctured lungs and a broken wrist.

Mr Ozdemir was found unconscious by his friends and a former paramedic who was passing the scene of the accident. They frantically made arrangements to take him to hospital.

His travel insurance covered the medical treatment, but his family were told they needed £45,000 (€50,000) to bring him home for further treatment in Belfast by Medevac. The money was raised within days after support from friends at home.

Yesterday, Mr Ozdemir began the long journey back to Northern Ireland and is due at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Belfast today.

Before leaving, he told the Belfast Telegraph how the "monumental" support from his friends to bring him home in time for the New Year has given him hope.

Recalling the accident, Mr Ozdemir said: "In all honesty, it's a bit of a blur and the first few days afterwards remain a bit of a chaotic haze. I remember going downhill at speed, the front wheel rattling wildly out of control, trying to correct it and, after that, nothing."

He was cycling with his friends Eamonn McCartan and David Cox who, along with his mother Christine, have been at his bedside in Thailand since the accident.
Christine said: "I was in Turkey with my husband and daughter - we were supposed to spend Christmas there and fly back to Ballymartin in the New Year.

"I just wanted to get the first plane to Thailand. I'm just glad my son's alive. "

Doctors have told her son there is only a small chance he will walk again. "I'm hanging on to the slight possibility he will walk again and hoping for a miracle," Christine said.

Mr Ozdemir said the support he has received has kept him positive.

"It's been difficult in a number of ways logistically with regards to getting home let alone the challenging physical demands of post-surgery recovery," he said.

"But the support has been monumental, overwhelming and very humbling at such a difficult time for myself and my family, so my gratitude is immeasurable for people's generosity at this financially taxing time of year."

His mother said the help had been "life-changing", adding: "The amazing support back home has been such a boost."

https://m.independent.ie/irish-news/...-36443798.html

If the cash goes past the target amount then they've got a little nest egg for fuck all right?

AS much as I feel sorry for him, I do think it should be repaid in some way.

Originally Posted by DJ Pat

If the cash goes past the target amount then they've got a little nest egg for fuck all right?

AS much as I feel sorry for him, I do think it should be repaid in some way.

Oh come on Pat, where's your sense of charity this festive season? Poor bloke probably wheelchair bound for life and you think he should pay back a couple of thousand to those who donated to him?

Scrooge!

On the bright side, this is a real first...

Originally Posted by DJ Pat

I feel sorry for him

No, l just don't agree of this giving free cash to people who aren't fucking responsible enough to be sensible on holiday in the 3rd world. Nothing ever seems to be their fault and its like their god given right to be helped.

Then again the mugs freely throwing their cash at them are equally as retarded.

And before some smartass says "oh but what if it was you?" I'd like to say that it won't be me and my ass is well covered anyway. It's not rocket science.

I suppose if you'd spent your life mining coal or something then that attitude might be understandable. However, coming from someone who's skived his way through life and lives, when he's there, in an Islington council flat it seems as if you're just saying 'I'm alright, jack'.

Skived?

I assume you worked real hard to get where you are.... did you?

Are you being paid for the Xmas holiday time off? I'd seriously doubt that in the 3rd world where you have chosen to set up roots.

Council flats have central heating and hot water. Bloody great it is.

Originally Posted by DJ Pat

Skived?

That's what I said.

I was on school report aged 9 for skiving

Old habits die hard.

the friends and family raised the cash amongst themselves or did a friend start a gofundme ?

Originally Posted by cyrille

Old habits die hard.

You can do better than that. Hardly a put down