A bride-to-be is on a mission to fly the medics who saved her fiancé’s life 5,000 miles across the Atlantic for their wedding. Helen Smith owes so much to a community in Mexico, she’s even determined to invite the taxi driver and hotel boss who helped her future husband Davy Duncan.
The deep sea diver, 60, was at death’s door after testing positive for Covid a week after arriving in Mexico for work last year. He had to be isolated on his dive ship for days due to the weather before a helicopter could get to a hospital on the mainland.
But, after a recovery, including two months in a Mexican hospital, Davy proposed to Helen back in Scotland to seal his incredible second chance at life. Helen, 51, had flown out from their home in Fort William to be with him after he fell ill on the ship and was given the worst news that he wasn’t expected to pull through from the deadly virus.
But doctors fought hard and saved Davy’s life, while the local community rallied round Helen to make sure the couple had everything they needed. She said: “Dr Louis, who saved his life in Villahermosa, calls Davy his miracle, as he was not expected to pull through.
“The taxi driver Chico went above and beyond to look after me and get me to and from the hospital, to blood banks and to get essential shopping for Davy. He needed blood and unlike the UK, you had to go buy it from blood banks. Sadly he is a rare blood group and my most surreal time was being driven around the city looking for blood for Davy.”
The hotel manager, Francisco, even gave his staff time off to help, telling them “anything that man needs, we will help”. He also organised a campaign to get blood, which proved successful. Now Helen has launched her own campaign, on GoFundMe, to raise £20,000 to pay for medics, hotel staff and others who helped them to come to Fort William for their April 15 wedding
.Previously super-fit before Covid struck, Davy suffered numerous strokes in Mexico and is now in a wheelchair. He said: “I would love to bring the Mexicans over because they are like my family, we spent so much time together. They saved my life and looked after Helen.”
Helen said: “Davy has a smile to light up any room, it’s said. He has never asked, ‘Why me?’ He smiles and gets on with it.” Talking about his admission to hospital, Helen said: “He was so poorly he was not expected to pull through. When he pulled through the first night, he was given five days. He had multiple organ failure and was in a bad way.”
After two months, the couple were flown by air ambulance back to Inverness, where Davy spent six months in Raigmore Hospital. Helen made the 140-mile round trip from the couple’s home in Caol, Fort William, to Inverness every day before Davy was moved to their local hospital.
She said: “We were lying in his bed on ward 2 in Raigmore chatting and he asked me to marry him. No bended knee, no bling, but it could not have been more romantic or emotional. Davy is so determined and motivated, he is adamant he will dance at our wedding.”
Helen added: “It would be great to have them, even better with their partners, here to celebrate and thank them for their role in getting us here today.”
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