Australian woman in Thailand may lose leg after hit by BUS

One minute she was having the time of her life on a scooter in Thailand, the next she was living a holiday from hell.

Stacey Liddle, from Brisbane, was meant to be celebrating her 30th birthday with her best friend, Sinead Markham, but on the third day of their holiday it came to a horrific halt.

Stacey and Sinead were riding scooters when a bus collided with Stacey in Chalong, south of Phuket, on October 26.

‘I saw Stacey being dragged under the bus and the back wheels of the bus drove over her,’ Sinead told Daily Mail Australia.

 

Stacey Liddle and Sinead Markham were riding scooters in Thailand when a bus collided with Stacey on October 26, leaving her with serious leg injuries (pictured)

'I was trying to pick up my calf up and put it back on ... trying to mend my leg back together,' Stacey told her cousin, Katrina Liddle, from her hospital bed

‘I was trying to pick up my calf up and put it back on … trying to mend my leg back together,’ Stacey told her cousin, Katrina Liddle, from her hospital bed

The horrific accident  took place just three days after arriving in the country to celebrate Stacey's (pictured) 30th birthday 

The horrific accident took place just three days after arriving in the country to celebrate Stacey’s (pictured) 30th birthday 

Thinking she was dead, Sinead soon heard her friend moan as they realised how badly injured Stacey’s leg was.

‘It was completely torn apart, her knee and shin bone was fully exposed and her flesh and calf muscle was lying on the road,’ Sinead recalled.

Stacey’s cousin, Katrina Liddle, told Daily Mail Australia there was a tremendous amount of blood loss and doctor’s warned that Stacey’s left leg may need to be amputated because it was ‘dying’. 

‘I was trying to pick up my calf up and put it back on … trying to mend my leg back together,’ Stacey told her cousin from a hospital bed.

Stacey, who turned 30 in her hospital bed on October 30, has had at least 10 blood transfusions, has an infection in her leg and still can’t feel below her knee.

‘The first day I was there her bed sheets were covered in sweat and blood, they gave her a bed bath on these same sheets and didn’t change them for a few hours afterwards,’ Sinead said. 

Unsure of what exactly is happening, Katrina said the hospital staff don’t speak English but have said her leg would have to be amputated.

‘The hospital is absolutely disgusting, there are ants everywhere, people are sleeping on the floor, the beds are rusted,’ Katrina said.

‘At one stage they were mistreating her and slapping her … they would slap her on the leg and just laugh. 

‘It’s a nightmare.’ 

Stacey’s mother, Leanne, and Katrina arrived in Thailand on October 29, to be with the 30-year-old. 

While Stacey and Sinead were meant to arrive back in Australia on November 1, Katrina said they needed to raise at least $30,000 to cover the medical flight in a bid to save Stacey’s leg.

‘We just want her home so she can get the right treatment,’ she said. 

Sinead told Daily Mail Australia they had been in contact with the Australian Consulate, who has helped with translations daily, but they told her they do not cover medical bills. 

Sinead first thought her best friend was dead when she saw Stacey being dragged under the bus (pictured) from her scooter

Sinead first thought her best friend was dead when she saw Stacey being dragged under the bus (pictured) from her scooter

'The first day I was there her bed sheets were covered in sweat and blood, they gave her a bed bath on these same sheets and didn't change them for a few hours afterwards,' Sinead said

‘The first day I was there her bed sheets were covered in sweat and blood, they gave her a bed bath on these same sheets and didn’t change them for a few hours afterwards,’ Sinead said

'We just want her home so she can get the right treatment,' Katrina said (Stacey pictured on her first day in Thailand)

‘We just want her home so she can get the right treatment,’ Katrina said (Stacey pictured on her first day in Thailand)

The young woman needs at least $35,000 for the medical flight home to escape the grim hospital conditions (pictured) and save her leg

The young woman needs at least $35,000 for the medical flight home to escape the grim hospital conditions (pictured) and save her leg

‘We came to Thailand to celebrate her birthday and it’s turned into a holiday from hell,’ Sinead said. 

The young woman needs at least $35,000 for the medical flight home, with thousands more to cover medical bills and have started a GoFundMe page to help with costs.

While the two young women both had Covermore Travel Insurance, Sinead said the company refused to help financially, instead helping find prices of medical flights back to Australia.

Despite the horrific experience, Stacey told her cousin that she was happy she was ‘alive and grateful’ and instead was focusing on her breathing as she suffers a punctured lung and asthma.

'We came to Thailand to celebrate her birthday and it's turned into a holiday from hell,' Sinead (pictured with Stacey on their flight to Thailand) said

‘We came to Thailand to celebrate her birthday and it’s turned into a holiday from hell,’ Sinead (pictured with Stacey on their flight to Thailand) said

Despite the horrific experience, Stacey told Katrina she was happy she was 'alive and grateful'

Despite the horrific experience, Stacey told Katrina she was happy she was ‘alive and grateful’

‘She’s not too bothered about losing her leg, if it has to go it has to go,’ Katrina said. 

The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade spokesperson told Daily Mail Australia they had been ‘providing consular assistance to an Australian woman injured in Thailand’.

‘For privacy reasons we are unable to provide further details,’ the spokesperson said. 

Daily Mail Australia contacted Covermore Travel Insurance for comment. 

Read more at DailyMail.co.uk