A St. Patrick’s Day tragedy has ended with a heartbroken family pleading for help from the public to get their brain-damaged son home from Burnaby to Ireland.
Thirty-two-year-old Ciaran Kelly, from the coastal town of Bray, Ireland, has been in intensive care at Burnaby Hospital since suffering a cardiac arrest last Friday (March 17), according to a GoFundMe page set up by his family.
Because the cardiac arrest cut off the supply of oxygen to his brain, he now has severe brain damage, and the cost of his ICU stay is piling up at a rate of $15,000 per day, the family said.
“As you can imagine the stress and worry of what is actually happening is unbearable for us and feels so terribly cruel,” they said.
Family members flew to Vancouver within hours of getting the news, according to the GoFundMe page, but because they have no status in Canada, they have had to return to Ireland.
They are now hoping to raise nearly $145,000 to pay for a special medical flight for Kelly back to Ireland.
“Both the Irish and Canadian governments cannot assist us financially in any way,” states the GoFundMe page. “Therefore, we are left with no other option but to appeal to the kindness and generosity of the public to help us bring Ciaran home.”
The Fraser Health Authority confirmed Friday Kelly was staying at Burnaby Hospital.
So far the campaign has raised nearly $60,000.
For more information, visit tinyurl.com/CiaranKelly.
