A father who was struck by a whale’s tail while fishing is still in hospital three weeks later after being left with a brain injury.
Jordan Mainstone, was fishing with his friend from a boat off Duranbah, near the NSW-Queensland border, when a whale appeared next to him at 9am on August 18.
The whale was breaching and hit Mr Mainstone in the face, rendering him unconscious.
The father-of-three’s friend and skipper of the boat, Jamie French, helped Mr Mainstone, before other locals – some on jetskis – also arrived to render assistance.
After emergency services were alerted to the horrific incident, Mr Mainstone was rushed to Gold Coast University Hospital with a serious brain injury.
Mr Mainstone’s wife, Rebecca, didn’t believe Mr French when he called to tell her about the incident, 7News reported.
‘I thought it was a joke, until I heard the panic in his voice,’ she said.
Her husband was placed in an induced coma for six days before undergoing intense treatment for the traumatic brain injury he sustained from the whale.
Jordan Mainstone (pictured left with wife Rebecca and their three children) was knocked unconscious when a breaching whale hit him in the face with its tail while he was fishing with a friend in a boat
He has now been diagnosed with post-traumatic amnesia, which is when confusion occurs after a traumatic brain injury.
Fighting back tears, Ms Mainstone said her husband’s recovery could take months – or even years.
‘I was under the illusion that I would have my husband back within a week or two, and the boys would have their dad home,’ she said.
Ms Mainstone revealed her husband is confused, disoriented and ‘doesn’t remember’.
‘Until we get him emerging from that, we don’t know the extent of his brain injury,’ she said.
The fisherman’s wife said she is trying to find him a place at a brain injury rehabilitation facility to give her husband ‘the best possible chance’.
Their local Gold Coast community is supporting the family and have set-up a GoFundMe to ‘help lessen the burden of everyday costs’ and to assist with ongoing medical expenses.
‘He has a long road to recovery with an uncertain time frame of when he will be able to return to work,’ it read.
The whale can be seen breaching next to the boat (pictured) Locals rushed to help Mr Mainstone after witnessing the incident before he was taken to hospital with a serious brain injury
‘Rebecca has also been unable to work during this time and depending on Jordan’s recovery requirements/time, may also not be able to return to work for some time.’
Ms Mainstone expressed her gratitude for the ‘ongoing support, love and help’, saying that most days contain ‘lots of ups and downs’.
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