Source : Perth Now news
A Bali holiday has ended in tragedy for a Perth couple after a crash on a major Denpasar road claimed the life of a Roleystone father and left his wife seriously injured.
Andy Stoakes was killed when the Toyota Rush he and his wife Julianne were travelling in crashed into a concrete barrier and a lamp pole on Saturday evening.
Their driver, a Balinese friend of 10 years, was also injured.
Ms Stoakes survived the crash but has since been flown to Perth for emergency treatment.
“I thought I was going to die,” Ms Stoakes said.
Tragically, her husband did not survive.
“I was yelling to him, but there was no response,” she said.
Ms Stoakes said the couple were travelling into Denpasar when the crash unfolded.
“I saw it… and my husband yelled out Jeffrey what are you doing? And by the time we said that… he’d hit the wall,” Ms Stoakes said.
“We were actually going into Denpasar, the capital, because I was going to buy (the driver) new tiles.”
All three occupants, who were wearing seatbelts, were taken to hospital following the crash.
Ms Stoakes said she watched as medical staff desperately tried to save her husband.
“My husband was in one of the bays there and they were giving him CPR and I knew by what was happening – this was not good,” Ms Stoakes said.
“With the physical pain then came the mental pain as well.”
Ms Stoakes was flown to Royal Perth Hospital and was discharged on Wednesday.
She now faces a lengthy recovery after suffering extensive injuries, including bruising to her head, broken ribs, sternum and shoulder, fractures to her feet and back and blood in her lungs.
The mother of two is also unable to return to her job as a patient care assistant at Armadale Hospital while she recovers.
Her family launched a GoFundMe to help ease the financial burden as they navigate her recovery and the cost of bringing Mr Stoakes home.
Remembering her husband, Ms Stoakes said he was always willing to help others.
“Nothing was ever too hard,” Ms Stoakes said.
“You would ask him something, and right there and then he’ll do it for you… (he) always knew how to fix things, and that’s what I’m going to really miss too.”
