WHEN a family from the Netherlands was planning a three week holiday to South Africa, they had no idea they would spend the majority of it in and out of hospital.
Ton Kremers and Nelly Kremers-Broeks, their daughters, Suzanne and Ineke, and the girls’ boyfriends, Johan Kuypers and Rob Thijssen, had been looking forward to their South African adventure since December 2013.
The first week included some glorious days in Mpumalanga and Swaziland as they made their way to St Lucia where they were looking forward to seeing the hippos.
After being shown around their lodgings in St Lucia, including the beautiful surroundings from the outside deck, their holiday ended abruptly when the deck suddenly collapsed.
‘There was no chance for us to grab something to prevent us from falling and we all fell more or less on top of each other,’ said Ineke.
In a state of shock, the family gradually realised what had happened.
‘We were all very worried about the condition of mom, since she said she wasn’t able to breathe properly and had a lot of pain,’ recalled Ineke.
Nelly had sustained the worst injuries which included four broken ribs, a collapsed lung, a broken pelvis and a bruised leg.
Ambulances took the six injured tourists to hospital where Nelly was in intensive care for a few days before being moved to the orthopaedic unit for a further ten days.
After two weeks of hospital visits, Suzanne and Ineke Kremers, Johan Kuypers and Rob Thijssen returned to the Netherlands, leaving Ton and Nelly behind.
The extent of Nelly’s injuries meant she could not return home until she had recovered sufficiently.
Excellent medical care
The family reported a very good level of care at Netcare The Bay Hospital where they were treated.
‘Dr Kelling has treated Nelly and he is an excellent doctor,’ said Ineke. ‘He has proven himself very helpful in arranging everything for our repatriation’.
Unable to enjoy all they had planned, including cycling through the Cape’s wineries and hot air ballooning over the Drakensberg, the Kremers will be back to make these memories.
‘We are already talking about returning to South Africa to finish our trip, although this may take a while,’ concluded Ineke.
A member of a local Community Tourism Organisation, said, ‘This brings a lot of harm to the tourism industry and we trust a thorough investigation will be conducted.
‘Through word of mouth, the victims retelling their experience, and Facebook, bad news travels fast.’
