DENVER (KDVR) — A Colorado family is desperately trying to get their dad from Englewood home after a sudden and severe illness in Europe.
Guy Matlock, 64, is currently hospitalized and unable to breathe on his own in Denmark after he and his wife, Adrian, embarked on a northern European cruise in mid-September for their 37th wedding anniversary.
“About six days into it, he fell ill with the flu… something that just seemed so simple as the flu, rapidly turned into something else,” their daughter, Moriah Matlock, told Nexstar’s KDVR.
“They pulled into port as soon as possible… They found that he had flu A, pneumonia and sepsis, essentially turned into a super virus within his body and started attacking his major organs.”
The family said their dad went into cardiac arrest, his lungs failed, and his brain was damaged.
“Now, he is still on a ventilator, but it’s only working 25% for him, but he’s not completely conscious,” said Moriah. “He is stable enough to fly but his condition still isn’t necessarily alert.”
The Matlock family flew to Denmark for a week after getting emergency passports within 24 hours. The Matlocks had never been outside of the country until this incident.
“No one can explain the sorrows that it can bring seeing someone so strong in such a not-so-strong state. Someone that has been everything that you ever needed in your life and they are incapacitated to not being able to even breathe on their own,” said Moriah.
But, the Matlock family has faced some challenges abroad.
“It’s very isolating in a different country, a country where you don’t know any of the language and there’s so many different societal changes,” said Moriah.
“His brain just isn’t getting enough stimulation from the Danish society, because he just hears the different languages and he isn’t able to compute.”
The family said the only way to get their dad home right now is an extremely expensive option.
“It’s $150,000 essentially… A medevac to my knowledge. It’s basically a plane that has all the medical necessities to be able to aid him if something were to happen,” said Moriah Matlock.
The family has started a GoFundMe to help get Guy home, which has raised about $8,000.
“We’re just a normal family and we try not to ask anything of anyone but unfortunately, we need to get our dad home,” said Moriah.