Man, 30, Broke His Neck While Traveling Abroad. Here’s the ‘Foolish’ Thing He Now Regrets Most
“You always think that these things won’t happen to you,” Guy Evans said
Guy Evans.Credit : Kennedy News & Media (2)
Guy Evans broke his neck after falling from a tree while doing yard work at his family’s vacation home
The man said he “obliterated” a vertebra in his neck and underwent emergency surgery, and he considers himself lucky that his spinal cord remained intact
Evans revealed he did not purchase travel insurance, leaving him facing a mountain of medical and transport costs
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A man broke his neck while visiting his father abroad, and he’s now sharing what he considers to have been his most “foolish” mistake leading up to the injury.
Guy Evans went to visit his father at a family vacation home in France in April, according to Kennedy News and Media. Guy, 30, said the incident occurred while he and his brother were doing some yard work on the property.
“We were doing some gardening work and there were these broken branches up this tree at the front of the house that were annoying me,” the London resident explained.
“I used a ladder to climb the tree and I got rid of two of them,” he continued, adding that he then “overstretched” in an attempt to get a third.
“The branch snapped, and I fell on a stone wall, which was where the damage was really done,” Guy said.
Guy Evans.Kennedy News & Media”I obliterated my C6 vertebrae, which is one of the vertebrae toward the top of the spinal column,” he continued, adding that he considers himself “very lucky” that his spinal cord remained intact.
Doctors reconstructed the vertebra in a two-part surgery, and Guy recovered in a hospital in France before being transferred to a medical facility in London.
He is currently on the road to recovery, and while he is not yet able to walk, he has regained movement in his arms and hands.
His positive prognosis aside, Guy said he now considers himself a “foolish, foolish boy” for failing to do one specific thing: invest in travel insurance before his trip.
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“You always think that these things won’t happen to you,” the copywriter said.
Guy Evans.Kennedy News & MediaHe added that the medical bills from his treatment in France and transport back to England are “racking up.”
Guy’s brother, Robbie Evans, established a GoFundMe in order to help Guy cover the massive medical bills.
“We don’t know exactly how much it is going to cost, but the repatriation back to the UK — that’s a big expense — and anything we have left over basically is going to go towards getting me the best medical care possible,” Guy explained, adding that the recovery process is expected to take about 18 months and will include time in an in-patient rehabilitation center.
Guy Evans.Kennedy News & Media“As you can imagine, this has been the hardest few weeks of our lives, but the strength and courage that Guy has shown in the face of unimaginable adversity has been nothing short of inspirational,” Robbie wrote on the fundraising page.
“If there is anyone capable of overcoming this challenge it is him, and your support will give him the very best chance of doing so,” he added.