Long road to recovery for young Mpumalanga paraglider

Kelvin van Baalen (21) struck power lines near Barberton on June 29, Lowvelder reports.

His mother Leigh says Kelvin has undergone approximately 17 operations, with many more to come. Their medical aid is practically exhausted and the family are facing another two years of medical bills.

“They are one-third done with the skin grafts. Unfortunately he now has a bacterial infection which has caused large parts of the skin grafts on his torso to be lost. They will need to be redone once the infection has cleared.”

His left leg remains in jeopardy and may need to be amputated.

Leigh told the media what happened on the day of the accident.

“My darling son Kelvin was paragliding in a competition in Barberton, one of many competitions he has participated in.

“This was the one that was going to change his life forever, his last flight. The conditions were not good. He scratched around a bit to try find a thermal and gain height.

“He was coming in to land, saw the power lines at the very last minute, turned his wing too hard and landed up spinning straight into the lines.”

She said he felt a power surge and then was knocked unconscious.

“He awoke to find himself engulfed in flames! Kelvin remembers what happened to him and tears well up in his eyes when he whispers to me, ‘mom, I thought I was going to die’.”

But his incredible will to live kicked in. He rolled around on the grass to put the flames out and climbed a tree in order to escape the veld fire. This is where his father, Douglas, found him – naked, burned, traumatised, and in shock – clinging to a branch.

“Thank goodness for an angel, a fellow paraglider, who saw what happened to my son and was able to drop a location pin so he could be found.”

His father carried his son to the ambulance, from which he was airlifted to Milpark Hospital’s burns unit.

“The call I received, ‘Leigh, there’s been an accident. He has flown into power lines and isn’t moving,’ was a call that is to change all of our lives forever. I will never forget the sound of the chopper landing at Milpark, knowing my burned child was in it, but not knowing whether he was alive or dead!”

Kelvin was admitted in a critical condition with 62 per cent full body burns. He had a collapsed lung, failing kidneys, was severely dehydrated and hanging onto life by a thread.

Plastic surgeons were called in immediately, as he required extensive debridements before the multiple skin grafts could begin.

”The amazing team of urologists, pulmonologists, cardiologists, physicians, nursing staff and psychologists have worked tirelessly for six weeks now to save this amazing child’s life. He is battling with sepsis, multiple infections and currently, pneumonia and will be kept in ICU lockdown for months to come.

“He is awake after a month-long coma, weak but fighting, fighting to live, fighting to come home, fighting to talk again and fighting to make sense of what happened to him.

“This brave 21 year old, who once had a full, exciting life ahead of him, now faces years of grafts, reconstructive surgeries, rehabilitation and psychological therapy. He is afraid of the dark, afraid to be left alone, afraid of the pain and afraid that he may still lose his left leg.” She says he holds ice packs constantly as he is convinced his body is burning and will need to wear a pressure suit for at least 18 months to keep his wounds soft and aid healing.

Gone are the carefree days of his youth, and in their place unimaginable pain, suffering and heartache. He now faces a long, horrifying ordeal to come back to his family, to conquer again and continue to live the life he was born to live.

“I do not know what the future holds for this bright young man, but I have no doubt that he is destined for big things! I look forward to hearing his voice again, to laughing and joking with him, but most of all, I look forward to witnessing the phoenix rise again.”

Anyone who wants to assist the Van Baalen family can deposit any amount in the account:

Kelvin’s Rehabilitation Fund
Bank: FNB Ltd, Norwood
Branch Code: 250 655
Account number: 6277 6317 375