A Greek tourist visiting his family in Australia for the holidays may never walk again after an accident at a popular beach.
Ioannis Vidiniotis, 28, was swimming with his loved ones at Cottesloe Beach in Perth – the city’s postcard 1.5km stretch of sand – on New Year’s Eve when he struck his head on a sandbank.
He became unconscious in the water.
“Giannis went into the water feeling safe,” his cousin Aristea Kazantzidou said.
“The next I saw him floating face down. None of us could have imagined how quickly everything would change.”
Kazantzidou pulled her cousin from the water as a beachgoer with medical training and lifesavers rushed to help.
Paramedics arrived and provided treatment before rushing him to Royal Perth Hospital.
Vidiniotis had broken his collarbone and suffered catastrophic spinal injuries.
He is in the intensive care unit and unable to move his legs or close his hands, according to the Hellenic Community of Western Australia.
“Surgeons have advised that, due to the extent of his spinal injuries, Ioannis may be facing quadriplegia,” the organisation said on an online fundraising page.
Vidiniotis is expected to remain in hospital for another six to eight weeks and undergo a six-month rehabilitation program.
But surgeons have only given him a slim five per cent chance of regaining his ability to walk.
“This is the hardest reality for our family to face,” Kazantzidou said.
Vidiniotis’ parents are travelling from Greece to Western Australia to be with Vidiniotis.
The community has rallied behind the young man, raising almost $200,000 to cover the costs of his medical treatment.
