Kelly Fletcher, Gold Coast diver survives stroke and vows to dive again
A dedicated diver who has helped to pull up more than five tonnes of rubbish from Gold Coast waterways before having a stroke last month says all she wants to do is collect rubbish again.
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IT’S been just over a month since 36-year-old Kelly Fletcher had a stroke but she is already dreaming of being able to pick up rubbish again.
Underwater rubbish, that is.
The environmental crusader and experienced diver is part of the Gold Coast’s Environmental Divers group, who this year pulled up more than 1.75t of rubbish from the local waterways. Since 2012 she has helped to pull more than five tonnes from the ocean.
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But on Sunday, December 3, after a small hike up Wild Horse Mountain on the Sunshine Coast, Ms Fletcher experienced “excruciating” pain down her arm. Later, she says she fell out of her car when she returned home.
“It wasn’t until Tuesday that the facial droop, drooling, slurred speech actually set in,” she said.
She was taken by ambulance to Royal Brisbane Hospital which had a hyperbaric chamber where doctors suspected she had decompression sickness.
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Instead, she was told she had had a stroke.
Then a week later, her husband Chris had his contract cancelled as a fork lift driver.
“The agency he’s with has been trying to find work but they can’t,” she said.
“And he’s acting as my carer at the moment, there’s not a lot of leeway there.
“I’m quite independent and having to rely on people to do the simplest of tasks is very confronting, to go from being so active and now being able to do nothing.”
Ms Fletcher estimates it will take about 12 months of rehabilitation to get better. She needs to undergo physiotherapy and physical exercises and was also told she has three blood disorders, including an auto-immune disease.
Despite the rough road ahead, Ms Fletcher said she wouldn’t let it get to her.
“Stroke is a bitch, I wouldn’t recommend it, it’s not fun,” she said.
“The most confronting thing is that I feel useless … it’s frustrating. At least I’ve managed to maintain my sense of humour.”
Since her diagnosis, the diving community has rallied around her.
Sally Gregory, who was also awarded a commendation for brave conduct in 1995 after jumping into the water to comfort a woman whose partner had just been taken by a Great White shark, said Ms Fletcher was “one of a kind.”
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“Do you know she has helped to pick up more than five tonnes of rubbish from the waterways?” Ms Gregory said.
“She instigated the cleaning crew … and also motivated people to get on board with it.
“I know a stroke can be very difficult compared to a broken bone which can mend in six weeks, a stroke can be like guessing how long is a piece of string.”
So Ms Gregory set up a Go Fund Me page for the Fletcher family, hoping to raise $10,000.
It has raised $4000 so far.
Sea World’s head of marine science Trevor Long said Ms Fletcher and her ‘clean up crew’ were an asset to the waterways and it was sad to hear she’d had a stroke.
“When I first heard of them I was quite sceptical,” he said.
“But they’ve kept up their commitment. We need more people like Ms Fletcher, she has a love and a passion that’s of great benefit to the community.”
He said they would be happy to take Ms Fletcher out on the boat during a dive so she could be still be a part of the crew as she got better.
To donate: https://www.gofundme.com/KelzStrokeFund