November 2018

“In a second he turned into a human torch…”

Patrick has always been a very active person driven by the determination to better himself and achieve new goals. His love of sports is wide ranging. Locally he played rugby with Enniskillen RC , hurley with Belcoo PS, roller hockey, canoe polo and canoe surf with Erne Paddlers. He excels in extreme sports : white water canoeing, off piste skiing and snowboarding, mountaineering & hangliding. Last year he trained to take part for the first time in the International MontBlanc triathlon combining 1,5km swimming, 45km cycling and 10km running around lake Passy.

After his studies in outdoor sports he worked tirelessly as a seasonier for various English companies; combining his love of sports with his work: winter seasons in the Alps, summer seasons in England, France & Spain. For the last year he was working as a professional bus driver with a French bus transfers company in the Alps.

On the 27th April Patrick was doing a demonstration with poises at a local barbecue when his arm caught fire. What happened next changed his life for ever. A friend threw a bucket to extinguish the flames on his arms but the bucket was full of petrol not water. Patrick went up in flames like a human torch. He protected his face but the rest of his body sustained severe and deep burns. 65% of his body was burnt. He was flown immediately by helicopter from Chamonix to Lyon to the specialist Severe Burns unit.

For days he laid between life and death in the intensive care unit of Lyon hospital. He then spent 3 months in an induced coma in the same unit where he had on average 2 skin graft operations a week. We are very thankful of the amazing work the Lyon team did to save Patrick’s life and he is now out of immediate danger and trying to piece his life together again. He was in a rehabilitation clinic to learn to walk again, use his hands, etc...but infection on his deep wounds has forced him to go back to hospital (in Toulouse) for treatment. He is still there and working painfully on his recovery.

He is in good spirits and his determination is as strong as ever but he has a long convalescence ahead of him before he can once again live independently and regain some normality in his life.

Patrick’s future is now very precarious. He faces the bleak prospect of losing his job as he is unlikely to be able to drive professionally again and may not be able to find a job. Patrick is determined to go back to some kind of active life, to be independent and to work. He is looking at training and setting up his own business once his rehabilitation is complete...which will probably take months, maybe years.

We are now crowdfunding to help Patrick realise his dream of working again and are looking for your help to support him in this difficult venture.