Dad Paralysed After Banging Head While Playing With Daughter In Soft Play Area

A dad has been left paralysed from the neck down after hitting his head in a soft play area while playing with his daughter.

Wales News Service

Ashley Hooper collided with the padded bar of a climbing frame at the Once Upon a Playtime centre in Bridgend, Wales, while playing with his five-year-old daughter Lottie and was rushed to the Princess of Wales Hospital.

Thirty-one-year-old Ashley had hit the bar with such force that he 'compressed' his spine and doctors undertook emergency surgery to remove bones from his neck, before adding a metal rod to keep him straight.

His girlfriend, Carly Fraser, said the accident has left her partner in severe pain.

Carly, 29, said: "While in the play frame he hit his head on one of the padded bars with such a force it compressed his spine leaving him paralysed from the neck down.

"His spinal cord is bruised and swollen and because he's got a narrow spinal canal there wasn't a lot of room to allow for swelling.

"The swelling is compressing on nerves which left him in severe pain through his upper body."

Wales News Service

However, Carly is hopeful her boyfriend - who is a housing company worker - will make a full recovery, as his spine has been stabilised following the operation and he has started to regain movement in his toes and legs.

She said: "He is on flat bed rest for six weeks and in time we are hoping and praying that Ashley will start to regain movement of his limbs. He's already made amazing progress.

"The doctors are very happy and while they can't guarantee anything they believe that he's heading in the right direction.

"Recovery of this type of injury varies from person to person but Ashley is so positive and confident and is fighting every single day.

"All we can all do is hope and pray for the best possible outcome."

Wales News Service

Staff at the play centre have raised more than £500 ($621.50) to help the family as Ashley recovers.

A play centre spokeswoman said: "We as a staff have been completely devastated by these events, but that does not compare to what Ashley's family are going through - and we would like to show our support for them."

Topics: uk news

Jake Massey

Jake Massey is a journalist at LADbible. He graduated from Newcastle University, where he learnt a bit about media and a lot about living without heating. After spending a few years in Australia and New Zealand, Jake secured a role at an obscure radio station in Norwich, inadvertently becoming a real-life Alan Partridge in the process. From there, Jake became a reporter at the Eastern Daily Press. Jake enjoys playing football, listening to music and writing about himself in the third person.

@jakesmassey