Hospitals

The most peaceful area in the entire hospital was a small patio at its centre, where patients rested on benches beneath a wooden pagoda. Nearby, a small, colourful obstacle course helped survivors regain their mobility after surgery and other intensive treatments.

That’s where we met four-year-old Alexandro and his mother, Youseline Philisma.

Alexandro was just one month old when an armed group set fire to the displaced persons camp where they were living. He was plucked from the flames, alive but severely burned.

Since then, Youseline had been taking him to Tabarre’s burn unit — the only one left in the country.

“When I come to the hospital, it’s another world. Everybody understands my little one. Everyone gives us a lot of love,” she told us.

Alexandro will need the burn unit’s care for the rest of his life. Surgeon Donald Jacques Severe is among the doctors treating him.

Severe could leave the country. His wife and children have already done so, departing four years ago for the United States. Armed fighters had overrun their home. Severe himself has a visa to live in Canada. But so far, he has not left.

His fellow surgeon, Xavier Kernizan, tried to explain the sense of duty he and Severe share.

“We know that if we’re not here, someone will struggle,” Kernizan said.

“Personally, we are close to burnout. Sometimes we are close to depression. But there is also this satisfying feeling of having helped to improve someone’s daily life, of offering a little hope to someone in their darkest moments.”

But if the security situation continues to deteriorate, it is impossible to know whether Tabarre Hospital will survive.

On April 11, my documentary team and I drove out of the hospital gates for the first time in a week. We were heading to Petion-Ville, one of the few places in Port-au-Prince still under government control.

There, we walked across a football pitch near the Karibe Hotel, where a helicopter from the World Food Programme picks up passengers. It’s the only way out of the capital right now.

We clambered into the helicopter, its rotors began their churn, and the Haitian capital began to grow smaller as we rose into the air, sailing above the bubble of violence below. I remember feeling relief.

The staff at the hospital stayed behind. They have no intention of leaving.

Damian Homer, 51, was convicted of murder and attempted murder in November 2024 after launching a brutal attack on his partner and her mum while their two young children were at home

A quiet spring evening in a Worcester suburb erupted into chaos when police and paramedics swarmed a residential street, responding to a harrowing double stabbing on March 2, 2024.

Inside the house, Damian Homer stood at the door, blood staining his t-shirt. His partner Stacey Hill and her mother Wendy Francis lay injured on the floor – both stabbed in a frenzied attack that left one dead. The horrifying details of the case have been revealed in full in the BBC Two docuseries Murder 24/7.

Homer had launched a violent assault on Stacey and Wendy in a terrifying outburst, even pausing mid-attack to ask Stacey – bleeding and helpless – for a kiss. As she lay critically wounded, Stacey described hearing the “noise the knife made in my mum”.

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Wendy, 61, had rushed to the home after her daughter called in fear, having seen the reflection of a knife in Homer’s pocket in their mirrored wardrobe.

When officers arrived, they restrained Homer against the wall. As he was arrested for attempted murder, he claimed: “Stacey went to stab me, then Wendy came in and they both tried to stab me. I had to protect myself… it’s a good job I did otherwise I’d be the one dead.”

Paramedics found Stacey surrounded by blood, urgently asking them to check on her mother and her two children who had been inside the house at the time. Police carried the two young children to safety, telling them: “Keep your eyes tight, tight, tight” as they were taken past the bodies.

While Stacey, 38, was rushed to hospital, Wendy went into cardiac arrest. Despite efforts to save her, she was pronounced dead at 9:18pm on March 2, 2024.

In police interviews the following morning, Homer claimed he loved Stacey and described a domestic argument escalating. He alleged Stacey tried to grab a knife first, which he took and placed in his pocket. Then he claimed Wendy stormed in and jumped on him, prompting him to draw the knife:

“We fell over and the knife went into her. Stacey was shouting, and she went to grab another knife… and came towards me. I launched at her. And she just froze on the spot.”

But his version immediately raised suspicions. He referred to a “second knife” Stacey had supposedly grabbed – yet when police searched the property, no second knife was found.

With Stacey in critical condition and Wendy dead, investigators turned to other sources. The couple’s children – now in the care of relatives – gave troubling accounts. A social worker noted they played with dolls, identifying one as “Daddy… he’s bad”.

One child said: “One of them got blood on Daddy’s T-shirt, and they were screaming. Daddy was in the kitchen, Mummy was lying down on the kitchen floor, and Nanny’s blood was dripping. Dad was throwing the knife he’d got in his hand, and it hit both of them.”

Homer’s violent past also began to emerge. His former boss Clair recalled his threatening outburst during a disciplinary meeting: “How fing dare they… if I find out it’s you I’m going to fing hurt you.”

He also had a suspended sentence for assaulting Stacey in 2020.

Detectives reviewed the couple’s mobile phones, uncovering evidence of a deteriorating relationship. On the day of the attack, Stacey had texted her mother: “I’ve had to come upstairs… believe me when I say I’m done.”

In another message to Homer, she wrote: “Find somewhere else to live… you’re lucky I ain’t called the police on you.”

To which he replied: “Lol. Only if you buy me out.” Concerned, Stacey’s aunt phoned emergency services:

“She’s just told me her chap’s got a knife in his pocket. Please get there quick.”

When Stacey was finally able to speak, she gave a harrowing account of that night. After a day out at a garden centre, Homer started drinking and grew increasingly aggressive. She went upstairs to get away, and spotted a knife in his pocket via their mirrored wardrobe:

“I said to my auntie, ‘Call the police, he’s got a knife.’ I called my mum and said, ‘Mum, Damo’s got a knife and I think he’s going to kill me.’”

Stacey tried to leave, but Homer pulled her back and began assaulting her. “He was swinging me around the kitchen and punching me in the head. I heard my mum come through the door and say, ‘Get your hands off my f***ing babbi.’ I breathed a sigh of relief – my hero had come to save me.”

But Homer didn’t stop. Instead, he pulled out the knife.

“We both ended up curled up on the floor… he pulled the knife out of his back pocket and stabbed my mum in the left side of her chest, for ages. All I could hear was the noise the knife made in my mum.”

“I tried to get on my mum to stop any more stab wounds being inflicted. He started panicking and as he did that, he came down to me and asked me for a kiss.”

Stacey, stabbed in the chest with a collapsed lung, was losing consciousness. But her thoughts were still with her mother:

“I kept asking about my mum but I could tell by the look on their face that it was bad news.”

Stacey’s detailed testimony, along with the children’s accounts, forensic evidence, and Ring doorbell footage capturing Wendy’s final moments, left police confident Homer’s story was false. He was charged with murder and attempted murder.

Though he initially claimed self-defence, Homer later pleaded guilty and was sentenced in November 2024 to life imprisonment, with a minimum term of 20 years.

“Everybody loved Damo,” Stacey reflected. “But when you were living with him 24/7, the mask started to come away. The first time he hit me, he said sorry. But there was no point in ever being happy, because I knew it wouldn’t last.”

“The biggest thing for me was losing my mum. But every time I think about giving up, I look at what my mum did for me. She saved my life and I know now what I have to do for my kids. I have to be the mum to them, that she was to me.”

Murder 24/7 is available to stream now on BBC iPlayer.

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Emily Jansson, 34, was on a flight from Canada to Dubai for a girls’ trip when she suddenly began experiencing ‘weird chest pains’ and coughing fits

A terrifying mid-air medical emergency has been recounted by a woman who suffered a life-threatening blood clot in her lungs during a long-haul flight. Emily Jansson, a 34 year old mother of two, was on her way from Canada to Dubai International Airport for a getaway with friends on February 5, 2025.

However, the lengthy journey took a nearly fatal turn when she started to experience “weird chest pains” alongside uncontrollable coughing.

Jansson had just awoken after sleeping for a significant portion of the 13-hour flight and was waiting to use the bathroom when she lost consciousness and collapsed, remaining out for about five minutes. “I was waiting for the bathroom and I got this really deep, dull aching pain in my chest out of nowhere,” she recalls of the ordeal.

In the fall, Jansson sustained injuries as she knocked her head, resulting in a bruised eye and arm, and afterwards found herself grappling with confusion and fragmented memories.

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Upon landing, which luckily occurred only two and a half hours later, she was swiftly taken to Rashid Hospital Dubai where urgent medical scans revealed a chilling diagnosis. A bilateral saddle pulmonary embolism.

This is an extensive blood clot situated within the primary artery of the lung which divides into branches for each lung.

The seriousness of her condition meant that any delay in treatment could have been catastrophic, reports the Mirror US. Doctors were astonished at her survival, admitting that given the circumstances, “it was essentially a miracle” she didn’t succumb to cardiac arrest.

In hindsight, Jansson identified multiple risk factors that contributed to her in-flight emergency. These included prolonged immobility despite wearing compression stockings, and the estrogen birth control pill Zamine, both posing substantial threats to her wellbeing during the flight.

This combined contraceptive pill, containing both progestogen and estrogen, can increase the likelihood of blood clots. She is currently on anticoagulant medication to prevent further clotting and will remain on this treatment for a minimum of six months.

She explained: “I was restricting my body’s blood flow, which contributed to my clot developing. I had little idea about the danger I was in. After taking estrogen birth control for six years before consistently, I didn’t know my risk of blood clots was so high.”

A saddle pulmonary embolism, a condition where a blood clot obstructs the artery feeding the lungs, only represents 2 to 5 per cent of all pulmonary embolism cases. If not addressed promptly, it can result in heart failure and cause sudden death in approximately 30 per cent of instances.

“I was terrified and partly in denial when they told me what I had. I knew someone who had the same thing and how serious it was and I was just freaking out,” Jannson admitted.

Jannson spent six days in hospital receiving thrombolytic therapy and clot-dissolving medication. She recuperated with a friend in Dubai for three weeks post-treatment.

“It’s important that people know about the risks of this particular birth control, Zamine, and the safety of flying. If you’re on a long-haul flight, make sure you move around and let your body breathe,” she cautioned.

Jannson elaborated: “I was fortunate that there was a doctor on board and some very amazing, competent flight attendants. They essentially saved my life when it shouldn’t have been possible.

“I’m still recovering from this episode, and my body has been through a lot. But I’m hopeful my experience can educate people about the risks of blood clots. And just as a reminder that life is so precious and to just really appreciate it.”

The infamous ‘Poop Cruise’ – where passengers were left stranded without any power and had to poo in bags – made global headlines back in 2013 as the chaos unfolded

Netflix documentary series Trainwreck explores some of the most bizarre, jaw-dropping, and at times downright revolting events in recent history. One particularly unforgettable episode focuses on a maritime disaster that made global headlines: the infamous “Poop Cruise”.

In February 2013, the Carnival Triumph cruise ship set sail from Galveston, Texas, with more than 4,000 passengers and crew onboard, bound for a leisurely four-day Caribbean getaway. But the holiday quickly unravelled into chaos.

On the third day, a fire erupted in the aft engine room. Though the blaze was quickly extinguished and no injuries were reported, it critically damaged the ship’s main power systems. The Triumph was left drifting in the Gulf of Mexico without propulsion, or basic functioning utilities.

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With the power out, vital systems failed, including air conditioning, refrigeration, and most importantly, the sewage and sanitation infrastructure. What followed was a nightmare.

Toilets stopped working. Raw sewage began leaking into hallways and cabins, filling the ship with a stench described by passengers as unbearable. Many were forced to relieve themselves in plastic bags and red biohazard bags, as bathrooms became unusable.

With the air conditioning offline, temperatures inside soared, making the interior suffocatingly hot and humid. Dozens of passengers chose to sleep on open decks just to escape the heat and foul odours.

Food quickly became scarce. Without refrigeration, the crew did what they could, serving cold sandwiches and sparse meals often consisting of little more than bread and vegetables. Water was rationed, and tensions steadily rose.

Although communication with the outside world was limited, word of the ship’s grim conditions quickly spread. Images of the stranded vessel and its desperate passengers went viral, drawing international media attention.

After five gruelling days, the Carnival Triumph was finally towed to port in Mobile, Alabama, bringing an end to the ordeal, but not to the controversy.

In the aftermath, investigations uncovered troubling details. CNN obtained documents showing only four of the ship’s six generators were functioning before departure, and that Carnival had prior knowledge of both fire hazards and fuel line issues. Records revealed nine separate fuel line incidents in just two years, raising serious questions about the company’s maintenance practices and safety protocols.

As lawsuits mounted and scrutiny of the cruise industry intensified, Carnival found itself in damage control.

Then-President and CEO Gerry Cahill issued a public apology, saying: “I want to again apologise to our guests and their friends and families. The situation on board was difficult and we are very sorry for what has happened. We pride ourselves on providing our guests with a great vacation experience and clearly we failed in this case.”

Kimberly Townsend, a 54-year-old mother of two and grandmother of three, was among 31 passengers who sued Carnival, holding the company accountable for what they describe as a disastrous voyage.

In her testimony, Townsend gave a vivid and emotional account of the harrowing days spent aboard the disabled ship stranded in the Gulf of Mexico. She described terrified passengers crowding the decks, worried for their safety, while foul-smelling toilets overflowed into hallways. There was no power, near-total darkness, long waits for limited water, and a severe lack of food.

Townsend recalled finally managing to reach her mother by phone once the crippled ship was towed into Mobile, Alabama – arriving days late from what was meant to be a dream vacation. She told the court she had begged her mother to come get her right away. As she recounted the moment, her voice faltered, she looked down, and began to sob in the witness chair.

She was one of several passengers from the Carnival Triumph who took the stand, some breaking down in tears, as they spoke about the ordeal and the emotional toll that still lingers a year later.

“I did not get physically injured. I got mentally injured,” testified Jean Cripps, a 74-year-old grandmother who suffers from Parkinson’s disease. She went on the cruise with her husband, Alton, who has diabetes and a hurt leg that forced him to retire disabled. The elderly couple was on the cruise as a present from their son, David, and grandson, Easton, who went with them.

“It never ends, the whole experience never ends,” testified Cripps. “It’s over and over again. We had two good days,” she said, referring to the first days of the cruise.

“But that’s not what I think about. I think about the smell, the stench and the bad things. All the memories come flooding back, and I can’t stop them.”

Among the worst memories, Cripps testified, was the fear that the ship, which listed severely after the fire, would actually turn over and sink.

“It was a horrible experience,” testified Michelle Key, 48, who went on the cruise with her mother, Fleda Key, 68. “I walked through water and faeces and urine, no telling what else,” she testified. “We would slip and slide through greasy, gross, slippery muck,” she said, adding “it was very difficult” for her mother.

Fleda Key described having terrible diarrhoea on numerous occasions and having difficulty finding any toilets that were not overflowing.

“There was lots of urine and faeces all the way up to the rim of every one,” she said, explaining she “choked away the smell”. Like many of the witnesses, she testified that she lived for days in total fear that they might not finish the voyage alive. “I was fearful, downright afraid and scared,” said Fleda.

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In this Tuesday’s Mirror Daily Digest, we’ve pulled together the biggest stories of the day from tributes following Kim Woodburn’s death to a ‘murder’ victim being found in an exploded house

Welcome to the Mirror’s Daily Digest, where we pull together all the best stories of the day from our News, Showbiz, Sport teams and more. This Tuesday, we’re featuring everything from Kim Woodburn’s death after a short illness to a human rights lawyer being found ‘murdered’ in an exploded London house and a review of Jeremy Clarkson’s pub.

This morning, news broke that Kim Woodburn had died following a short illness. Shortly after, her beloved husband and former co-star shared their tributes to the Celebrity Big Brother icon. Elsewhere, a ‘murdered’ woman was found after a house exploded in Stoke Newington and our reporter went to visit Jeremy Clarkson’s pub to see whether it was worth the hype.

Kim Woodburn dies after short illness as beloved husband and co-star Aggie break silence

This morning, our showbiz team broke the heartbreaking news that Kim Woodburn had died aged 83. The Celebrity Big Brother and I’m A Celebrity… Get Me Out Of Here icon, who shot to stardom for her no-nonsense attitude and witticisms on Channel 4‘s How Clean Is Your House with Aggie MacKenzie, died on Monday.

Her beloved husband-of-46-years Peter, who she lived with in their Nantwich, Cheshire home, is “heartbroken” over the loss of his soulmate. She was described as an “incredibly kind, caring, charismatic and strong person” by her loved ones, who were “so proud” of what she achieved in her career.

A representative for Kim shared in a statement: “It is with immense sadness that we let you know our beloved Kim Woodburn passed away yesterday following a short illness.”

Read the full story here.

‘Murder’ victim found in exploded house named as ‘lovely’ human rights lawyer

A beloved mother-of-two and human rights lawyer has been identified as the woman found with fatal stab wounds after a house explosion this morning. A huge emergency response including six fire engines and 40 firefighters raced to the two-storey terraced house where an explosion had torn through the basement and ground floor of the east London residence.

The victim has been formally identified as 46-year-old mother and human rights lawyer Annabel Rook, whose body was found with knife wound injuries after the explosion. Police arrested an as yet unidentified 44-year-old male on suspicion of murder before taking him to a major trauma centre in London for slash wound treatment. His injuries were not life-threatening, police said.

Neighbours told The Mirror: “She was a lovely lady – a very doting mother. I would always see her walking to school with her children. They go to school just around the corner.”

Read the full story here.

‘I drove 90 minutes to eat at Jeremy Clarkson’s pub — two words summed it up’

Nobody could have quite imagined the success Amazon would see after releasing Clarkson’s Farm. However, fast forward to 2025, the former Top Gear star’s agriculture show has just finished its fourth series, with a fifth series already on the way.

This season saw Jeremy Clarkson invest in a pub, The Farmer’s Dog, so our Deputy Content Hub Director, Steffan Rhys, went to go and check it out. He wrote: “There was a full-blown security and parking operation guiding arrivals into an enormous adjacent field with hundreds, if not thousands, of cars already parked in it. Visitors streamed like ants in formation between car park and pub and the stunned “bloody hell!” I heard from a fellow visitor pretty much sums up what I was thinking too.

“I’d naively thought that, given I had a lunch reservation (secured easily, several weeks earlier, on the pub website) it would be a quiet affair. After all, only so many people can fit in a pub, right? Wrong. Oh, so wrong.”

Read the full story here.

Killer who stabbed his partner, neighbour and dog on Christmas Day learns fate

A man who murdered his partner and neighbour and tried to kill his own son in an unprovoked and “frenzied” attack after taking cocaine on Christmas Day has been jailed for life. Jazwell Brown attacked his partner Joanne Pearson with a kitchen knife at their home in Bletchley, Buckinghamshire, at around 6.30pm on December 25 last year.

He stabbed her 31 times before turning the knife and a baseball bat on his son Jake Brown, with the youngster remarkably surviving his injuries. Brown went on to repeatedly stab Jo’s dog Tilly, a Staffordshire bull terrier, who was later spotted on CCTV limping from the scene.

Brown then headed next door to another flat and began attacking Teohna Grant. He also stabbed Teohna’s boyfriend 29-year-old Bradley Latter who survived, while Teohna was also pronounced dead at the scene. Police previously said the dog had died, but they have since been informed Tilly survived.

Read the full story here.

‘LEAKED’ Premier League fixtures for 2025-26 season – but fans spot major issues

As many football fans await the Premier League‘s return, our sports team got their hands on a reportedly ‘leaked’ list of Premier League fixtures for the 2025-26 season. However, the list – which has been leaked and widely shared on social media platforms – is not as it seems.

As is the case at this time of year, amid growing anticipation among supporters, social media has been awash with claims and fixtures coming to light early. One set in particular have been gaining quite a bit of traction. On the face of it, they look pretty legit. The usual font and layout used when the fixtures are actually released is certainly present.

But dig a little deeper and issues arise. Most notable among them are a number of admin errors which, perhaps if you’re only casting a casual glance and looking at the opening weekend, or even just for your club’s full list, you wouldn’t see.

Read the full story here.

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After the tragic Air India Flight 171 crash killed over 200 people, aviation experts are reassuring viewers on This Morning that aviation is still one of the safest ways to travel

Aviation experts have spoken out following the tragic crash of Air India Flight 171, which killed at least 241 people on board and eight more on the ground, insisting that air travel remains one of the safest modes of transport.

A female aviation analyst appeared on ITV’s This Morning, telling viewers that while plane-related tragedies are devastating, they remain incredibly rare. She said: “Of course there is a risk when you go into a metal container that is seven miles above the planet.

“There is an element of risk to everything we do, but it is still more dangerous to ride your bike down the street or to get in a car than it is to fly on an aircraft.”

She continued to defend air travel, adding: “What doesn’t make the news is the boring story of the aircraft taking off, flying where it’s supposed to, and landing again. We do learn in aviation from the mistakes that have happened or design errors that have happened. Whatever the findings are from this investigation, procedures will be put in place to make sure this can never happen again.”

Meanwhile, another expert sat beside her insisted: “There’s been learning since the dawn of aviation. Things happen, procedures are set in place, design changes are made to prevent it happening again. So every incident, it gets safer.”

The expert comments come in the wake of one of the worst aviation disasters since the tragic 9/11 terror attacks. Air India Flight 171, a Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner, crashed into a residential area in Ahmedabad just minutes after take-off on Thursday (June 12).

The aircraft issued a mayday call moments before vanishing from radar, with the captain saying: “Mayday… no thrust, losing power, unable to lift.”

Eyewitnesses captured harrowing footage of the plane descending nose-up before exploding in a massive fireball. There were 241 passengers on board along with crew members.

The crash also claimed the lives of eight people on the ground, including medical students and their family members living in nearby buildings.

British national Vishwash Kumar Ramesh, miraculously survived the crash. He has spoken to press from the hospital, saying: “The lights started flickering — green and white — then the plane rammed into some establishment… I saw people dying in front of my eyes. I don’t know how I survived.”

His family in Leicester said they were “devastated” to learn of the crash and shocked that Vishwash made it out alive. He has been treated for facial injuries and was pictured being comforted by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during a hospital visit.

Former This Morning editor Martin Frizell has paid tribute to a former guest on the show, wellness coach Fiongal Greenlaw, who is feared to have died in the crash along with his husband Jamie Meek.

Martin said Fiongal was “vibrant and full of enthusiasm” during his appearance on the ITV show, adding: “Thoughts are with his family and friends and those of his partner Jamie.”

Investigators are hoping to find out what exactly caused the catastrophic engine failure after recovering a black box from the Air India Flight 171.

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Ben Crook’s post mortem revealed he had suffering horrendous injuries after ‘falling from height’

A dad tragically died after falling from a height whilst on holiday in Turkey, following his removal from a flight due to drunken behaviour and subsequent separation from his family. The devastating news of his death was only discovered when his father travelled to Turkey to investigate his whereabouts.

Ben Crook, 32, was reported missing after he jetted off to Antalya with his partner Jess Jenkins and their two children on September 23. After consuming alcohol and cocaine, he exhibited erratic behaviour on the flight, shouting at an air steward and smashing both his and Ms Jenkins’ mobiles, according to the inquest.

Upon landing in Turkey on September 24, Mr Crook, from Abertridwr, Caerphilly, was escorted off the plane and separated from Ms Jenkins. She was instructed to leave the airport and took a taxi to their hotel with the children.

The inquest at Gwent Coroner’s Court on Tuesday revealed that Mr Crook never made it to the hotel, reports Wales Online.

Following his son’s disappearance, Mr Crook’s father journeyed to Turkey and uncovered the tragic news that his son had died after falling from a height and sustaining fatal injuries.

A post mortem examination conducted at the Antalya Forensic Institute confirmed that Mr Crook had suffered external injuries and lacerations consistent with a fall. He passed away at Antalya Training and Research Hospital at 2.15am on September 25, the inquest heard.

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Following repatriation of Mr Crook’s body to the UK, a further post-mortem examination was performed at Grange University Hospital by Dr Majid Rashid on October 22, revealing that he had suffered severe head injuries, bruising on his upper limbs, cuts, and multiple abrasions to his abdominal wall. A chest incision suggested a tube had been inserted to drain fluid.

The examination also found a fractured skull vault, brain damage, and bleeding, as well as a fractured pelvis on both sides.

Toxicology reports showed the presence of cocaine, alcohol, ketamine, and cocaethylene in Mr Crook’s blood, with ketamine likely administered during treatment.

Dr Rashid determined the cause of death to be a fractured skull and pelvis due to blunt trauma from a fall.

In a statement read aloud in court by senior coroner Caroline Saunders, Ms Jenkins stated that Mr Crook had started drinking before arriving at the airport and purchased duty-free alcohol to consume at their hotel.

Due to a flight delay, the couple began drinking duty-free alcohol, with Ms Jenkins describing her partner as a “nervous flier” but mentioning they were “chatting and joking” before takeoff. During the flight, she revealed that Mr Crook’s demeanour altered and he started yelling at a male steward, demanding booze.

He subsequently smashed both his and Ms Jenkins’ mobiles, leading to him being escorted off the plane and separated from his partner.

Discussing Mr Crook’s substance abuse, Ms Jenkins stated her partner used cocaine recreationally, only indulging when he had been drinking.

Mr Crook’s sister Amy disclosed that her brother had struggled with drugs and alcohol, with his consumption escalating in the months preceding his death.

She also mentioned her brother’s mental health struggles, exacerbated by his drug and alcohol use, but Ms Crook insisted there were no signs he would take his own life, leaving his two children fatherless.

Upon returning from Turkey, Mr Crook’s father discovered a message in his Facebook Messenger spam folder, seemingly from his son, who was trying to ascertain the name of the hotel where his partner was staying. There was an additional message again requesting contact.

Members of Mr Crook’s family received communication from several unidentified individuals in Turkey who claimed they had seen the deceased prior to his death.

One individual who got in touch with Ms Jenkins claimed: “Hello, we have just seen your post about Ben being missing. We saw him on September 24 at lunchtime. He approached me and my husband for help while walking near Kaleici Harbour. He said he smashed up his phone and had brought a new one but it was not ringing for some reason. He used my phone to send a message to his friend and we gave him our number if he needed more help. He looked shaken and hungover. After the Facebook message and ringing his friend, he crossed the harbour and walked, we presumed, to the police station for help.”

Messages later followed from others, which included photographs apparently of Mr Crook lying on the ground at the base of a building.

There were suggestions he fell while smoking on 24 September, but there was no sign of third-party involvement.

Ms Saunders delivered her conclusion: “(Alcohol and drugs) may have caused disorientation and poor judgement but this is insufficient to determine he fell as a result of the drugs he had taken.”

She decided: “I find the fall was an accident, the exact details of which are unknown..”

Her final conclusion read: “On September 24, 2024, Ben Crook fell from height whilst on holiday in Turkey and sustained severe head and pelvic injuries and died on September 25, 2024. The conclusion I reach is that of an accident.”

Richard was ill when he got home and was rushed to hospital, where he was placed into a coma

A dad-of-two says he nearly died after contracting a rare disease from a ‘dirty’ 4-star hotel while on a sunshine break in Turkey. Richard Moore, 55, began suffering from a fever and chest pains after returning from a five-day holiday with partner Julie, 50.

The chef became so ill he was rushed to hospital and placed in an induced coma and his wife and kids told he may not survive. Doctors confirmed he was suffering from potentially deadly Legionnaires’ disease and he needed five days of hospital treatment, antibiotics and an IV drip.

Richard, of Blyth, Northumberland, said: “This holiday was meant to be a short break before I started a new job as an executive chef. Instead, it cost me my dream job, my health and very nearly my life. As a result of the memory loss, I can’t recall much of my time in hospital, but when I was admitted, I remember the fear and not knowing what was wrong.

“I’m lucky to be alive but it’s so upsetting to think my family were told I might not live. I never realised Legionnaires’ disease was so serious and I want to tell my story to make other people aware of the symptoms and the dangers.

“I wouldn’t want to think that other people were going off on a holiday unaware of what they could be walking into. If there are issues with the hotel then that needs looking at urgently.

“I feel fortunate to have pulled through. However, I do worry that someone else might not be as lucky as I was.”

Richard and his family paid £2,000 to stay at the four-star hotel. After arriving at the hotel on August 18 last year, Richard said he thought the hotel was dirty, old and dated.

He also noticed that the room felt damp and had grim fusty smell. He said: “I can’t specifically pinpoint to one thing but the water temperature fluctuated a lot in the shower. The bathroom and hotel generally looked run down and the sofa in hotel room beneath the air con felt damp throughout the holiday which made me think it was leaking.”

Days after returning to the UK, Richard’s began suffering from flu-like symptoms. On August 30 he developed chest pains, shortness of breath and a fever and was admitted to hospital.

He spent a month in hospital and has been unable to start a new job as an executive chef that he was due to commence. Richard still continues to struggle with lethargy, weakness and mobility issues linked to Legionnaires’ disease.

He has now instructed travel illness lawyers at Irwin Mitchell to investigate the cause of his Legionnaires’ disease. Jennifer Hodgson, representing Richard, said: “Richard’s first-hand account of his experience at the hotel and contracting his illness is deeply disturbing.

“Legionnaires’ disease is an incredibly serious condition, and it can take several days from coming into contact with Legionella bacteria before symptoms of the illness start to appear. As Richard has since discovered, the effects of the disease can be long-term.

“Nothing can make up for the impact the illness has had and continues to have on Richard, but we’re determined to provide him with the answers and specialist support he deserves. Public buildings, such as hotels and offices, can have complex water systems, so it’s vital that all precautions are taken to prevent the bacteria that causes Legionnaires’ disease developing.

“As part of our work and to assist with our investigations, we would be keen to hear from anyone else who may also have been affected by illness.”

Tony Exall was on a jungle tour near West Papua, Indonesia, when his left eye began to irritate him. He was shocked to discover what was actually causing the problem

A Brit travel agent’s trip to test holiday hotspots became a ‘nightmare’ when he discovered a leech sucking on his eyeball. Tony Exall was on a jungle tour near West Papua, Indonesia, on May 22 when his left eye began to irritate him. The 58-year-old blamed it on sweat or a tiny bug but two hours later a fellow visitor spotted that he actually had a leech on his eyeball.

A horrifying photo shows Tony’s bloodshot eye with the small black bloodsucker latched to the white area called the sclera. Tony grew concerned it might wriggle its way behind his eye so ended his trip early to find medical help.

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After eight hours and trips to two hospitals a doctor extracted the leech using tweezers – despite the creature pulling on his eyeball tissue to hang on. Tony, who owns travel company Philippine Dive Holidays, was in Indonesia to test out locations for customers when he decided to head on a photography trip.

The travel agent avoided catching an infection and achieved his aim of snapping a rare king bird-of-paradise minutes before the incident. He posted the video to Facebook where users described it as ‘stuff nightmares are made of’ and like ‘something from a horror movie’.

Tony, from Oxted, Surrey, said: “I came over here to investigate different places to work with in Indonesia so I thought, while I’m here, I want to do a bit of bird snapping.

“We were waiting for the bird to turn up and I was sweating buckets. I could feel something in my eye but I just thought it was a bug. I tried to get rid of it but couldn’t so I tried to ignore it.

“There were leeches everywhere and I must have used the back of my hand to wipe the sweat so I essentially wiped it into my eye. A couple hours later we went to move on to somewhere else and one of my spotters pointed out the leech in my eye.

“My biggest concern was that it would get round the back of my eye. He tried to pull it out with his fingers. He was pinching my eyeball to get it out but the leech was fixed onto my eyeball. I tried rubbing it but I couldn’t get it out.”

Tony had trekked two hours through the jungle near Malagufuk, West Papua, to reach an area known for king bird-of-paradise sightings.

After having the leech pulled from his eye, Tony was prescribed eye drops and antibiotics to make sure he didn’t develop an infection.

Tony said: “We went to two hospitals to find someone that knew something about eyes. At first he tried to remove it and that was quite sore because a leech grabs hold of something and starts to suck the blood.

“He started to gently pull the leech which was quite sore as it was something pulling on my eyeball. “My next concern was how do you get it off my eye without leaving anything behind. You hear these stories about tropical diseases and infections and having one in your eye is not the best place to have one.

“The doctor then squirted some anaesthetic drops onto my eye, got some tweezers and pop, off it came. The tissue of my eye was being pulled. I have never had that sensation before.”

After sharing the ‘squeamish’ photos of his eye on Facebook, freaked-out users were quick to comment on his bizarre experience. One user said: “I’m not usually squeamish but that is stuff from horror movies! Hope everything is okay now.”

Another added: “Omg you need a trigger warning on this post. Sounds awful, hope you recover quickly.” A third said: “Stuff nightmares are made of.” A fourth added: “Dangerous stuff, this photography.”