Son warns public to ‘wake up’ as healthy father, 55, rushed to hospital with coronavirus
THE family of a man who hospitalised after contracting coronavirus has warned he was "fit as a fiddle" before falling ill as they pleaded with Britons to "wake up" to the realities of the sickness.
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David Timney of Middlesbrough began experiencing flu-like symptoms shortly after returning from a trip to Amsterdam about two weeks ago. The 55-year-old’s condition drastically deteriorated over the weekend and he started to have trouble breathing. He was rushed to James Cook University Hospital by ambulance where he remains in the intensive care unit (ICU) suffering from COVID-19.
The couple’s 30-year-old son Luke told of his frustration at seeing photos of popular tourist spots teeming with Britons over the weekend.
Thousands flocked to beaches, parks and open spaces to enjoy the sunny weather.
Luke and his siblings are not allowed to visit their father in the hospital and also cannot see their mother, who is self-isolating at home.
Luke, who has two children of his own, told TeesideLive people need to open their eyes to the stark reality of what COVID1-19 can do to fit and healthy people.
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“The virus is real, it is a killer and it is here in our town - act now and responsibly before you or your loved ones fall ill,” he said.
His father faces the prospect of having to be put in an induced coma as he battles the potentially deadly virus.
"My family cannot visit him and we cannot comfort my mother as she is now having to self isolate at home,” said Luke.
"If this isn't the wake-up call people need to stop socialising then I don't know what is."
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He described his dad as “fit as a fiddle” before he contracted the illness.
Luke believes many Britons are heading out and about for non-essential reasons simply because they think they and their loved ones will not get sick.
He warned the public to stop burying their heads in the sand in the midst of the crisis.
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"It's frustrating,” he said.
“I'm not perfect by any stretch of the imagination.
"I think what it is, is a case of people genuinely not understanding the severity or the seriousness of it.
"It's not just them they are putting at risk, it's their family as well.”
Luke’s account of how coronavirus has affected his healthy father comes as multiple reports emerged about COVID-19 patients who are not elderly and do not have any underlying conditions.
Ryan Van Waterschoot, 28, spent 10 days in Peterborough City Hospital being treated for the virus.
He said he was previously “fit and healthy”.
The account manager who is now recovering at home has urged people “not to be selfish”.
He said: “I felt awful, I felt like my body was completely shutting down.
“I’ve always been fit and healthy, that’s the biggest shock about it. It went from 0-100 so fast.”
“When I tested positive it was horrendous. You’re on your own, you just think you’re going to die... It was the scariest moment of my life.”
And mother-of-three Areema Nasreen, 36, is fighting for her life after contracting coronavirus.
The nurse is hooked up to a ventilator at Walsall Manor Hospital in the West Midlands – where she has worked for the past 16 years.
Ms Nasreen does not have any underlying health conditions.