When young Atherton Tablelands businessman Rob Turner arrived in Karumba last week with his family, it was meant to be the start of a dream annual holiday.
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But it all went wrong from the start.
Rob, wife Gabrielle and their three children Estelle, 5, Frankie, 3, and Otis, nine months, were in the car together when Rob suffered a severe pain in the head.
He stepped out of the car, collapsed and became paralysed, leaving his family frantic with fear.
Rob was airlifted to Townsville Hospital and placed in intensive care. Doctors discovered he had a very rare bleed on the brain.
According to the GoFundMe page launched by Caitlin Francis of Atherton, Rob is "a fighter" and his condition is slowly improving, but there is a long and uncertain road ahead.
Mr Turner will be in hospital for a number of weeks while doctors continue to monitor him and he will then undergo brain surgery, facing many months of rehabilitation.
It is not clear how long it will take for Rob to recover, or what this will look like.
"Rob and Gabrielle run a small, family-owned construction company, but their business cannot operate while Rob is unwell, and Gabrielle cares for him and their children around the clock," Ms Francis said.
"The future of this beautiful family is now unclear. Gabrielle and the kids have relocated from the Atherton Tablelands to Townsville to be by his side, and face hefty accommodation and living costs while they are there".
This is the second time in just a few years that they have faced a life-threatening emergency. Their eldest daughter Estelle underwent urgent open-heart surgery when she was just four weeks old.
"Rob is a down-to-earth, generous and hardworking man who adores his wife and children," Ms Francis said.
"It is vital to his proper recovery that his family are taken care of, so that he does not face further stress and can focus on getting better."
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Derek Barry
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
