Mackay couple Jason Taylor and Lisa Adams dealt double blow with blindness, injury

A Qld couple has copped a devastating hit after the breadwinner shattered both ankles in a horror work injury — just months after his partner lost most of her vision.

Jason Taylor was working on a client's garden when he fell through a roof landing on both ankles, shattering them. He is looking at six months recovery. Photo supplied by Lisa Adams

A Mackay couple has been dealt a devastating blow after breadwinner Jason Taylor fell from a roof shattering both ankles less than six months after his high school sweetheart had to stop working when her vision deteriorated.

2025 had been a rough blow for the Slade Point pair, who have turned to the kindness of strangers via a GoFundMe campaign to help them through their ordeal.

Lisa Adams, 42, said in January she was diagnosed with detached retinas and was completely blind in her left eye and with only 50 per cent vision in her right – she is currently awaiting surgery to try and keep what eyesight she has left.

She had been working as a private nanny, which she had to give up and now has difficulty getting around outside their home without help.

“As soon as I go outside, I cannot really see more than about two steps in front of me,” she said.

Jason Taylor and Lisa Adams are high school sweethearts and have been together for 25 years. He became the sole breadwinner and her carer when her vision deteriorated about six months ago. Photo supplied by Lisa Adams

Ms Adams said she had been lucky because Jason, who she had been with for 25 years, had stepped up as the sole income provider and her carer.

They had recently started a lawn and garden care business – Taylor’d Mowing – which was beginning to gain traction.

But on May 12 he fell six metres through a patio roof while trimming back a tree with his ankles taking the full brunt.

“So both ankles are completely crushed,” Ms Adams said, adding Jason had metal rods drilled through his bones to keep them in place.

He was in Mackay Base Hospital awaiting further surgery to place more rods inside once the swelling went down, she said, adding he would need to be in a wheelchair for a time once this occurred.

Jason was working on a client's garden when he fell through a roof landing on both ankles, shattering them. He is looking at six months recovery. Photo supplied by Lisa Adams

“We’re looking probably around six months recovery. She’s going to have to relearn how to walk again … because he’d not going to be using those muscles for such a long time,” she said.

Unfortunately the couple had not taken out any type of WorkCover because the business was still new, having only been started in the past 12 months, and “we just wanted to see if it was going to be a viable thing to do to be able to cover the income that we needed”.

“It was actually just the last month that we’ve looked at WorkCover so we didn’t have anything in place … which we understand that’s on us,” Ms Adams said.

Ms Adams is also unable to claim any disability help because she isn’t deemed “legally blind” as she is still awaiting surgeries to help save her remaining vision.

Lisa is completely blind in her left eye and is awaiting surgery to save her remaining vision, which is only at 50 per cent in her right eye. Photo supplied by Lisa Adams

Mr Taylor’s latest blow comes barely five years after a serious injury to his neck where doctors had to fuse a piece of plastic to keep everything in place.

“We’ve just had a really bad run,” she said, further adding they were looking to see if they could also access their super to help them through this struggle patch.

“Everything just takes time,” she said.

Ms Adam started a GoFundMe which has already raised $5770 from 70 donations, which she said would help with the essentials like “keeping a roof over our heads and not having to sell our home, putting food on our table and covering our growing list of medical expenses”.

She said they were both so incredibly grateful for everyone’s kindness, with many of the donations coming from Mr Taylor’s clients.

To read more about this GoFundMe visit here.