A 20-year-old man from Belfast is currently in intensive care with a broken back in Ibiza after he jumped head first into the shallow end of a swimming pool recently.
The young man named Sean Paul McCabe broke his back in two placesand has had to undergo a five hour operation to reduce pressure on his damaged spine and faces a further 12 hours in surgery to repair the damage. Sean’s dad told reporters for Belfast live: “Sean was supposed to be back today and instead he is lying in a hospital bed with tubes and wires coming out of him.” “It was a last minute holiday and Gerard forgot to book insurance.” “One of his friends pulled out at the last minute and Gerard took his place so they did a name change and he flew out last Sunday and had the accident on Wednesday.” Mr McCabe further explained: “Boys being boys they had been out all night and were at the swimming pool the next day. “Gerard jumped straight in and didn’t realise it was the shallow end. The first we heard of it was when one of Gerard’s friends texted his girlfriend to say he had broken his neck and she contacted us. “Then they texted to say he had just winded himself but Gerard said he knew himself something wasn’t right. It turned out he had broken his back in two places.”
Mr McCabe and his wife, Edith, immediately traveled to Ibiza to comfort their son after they heard the news and are currently looking for accommodation. Mr McCabe explained: “It was very hard to see Gerard in the hospital bed, it was very emotional.” “We just wanted to get out to him. The doctor has told us Gerard was minutes away from being paralysed because the swelling was so bad around his spine. “He is very upset and is intensive care, he is crying on and off because of the pain. Mr McCabe added: “The hospital has been great but there is only so much morphine they can give him.