Shannon faces having to learn to walk again, followed by year of physiotherapy
A mum’s dream £2.5k family holiday to Turkey was ruined after she slipped on the wet floor of a ‘pirate boat’ – and snapped her leg in three places. Shannon Hill, 34, booked a trip abroad with her husband for the first time since 2019. The parents jetted off with their kids – Dexter, four, and Penelope, two – and Shannon’s mother-in-law, for a fortnight-long stay in Antalya, Turkey, on May 6.
Shannon said the first week in the four-star resort was everything they hoped for on their first family holiday. On May 16 they boarded a pre-booked ‘pirate ship boat trip’ – to the delight of the youngsters. But when Shannon went to the toilet, she slipped on an “unlabelled” wet floor and “heard the bone snap” in her lower right leg.
Doctors revealed her leg was broken in three places – requiring surgery to add screws and a metal plate to reconnect the bones. She spent three days in a Turkish hospital in agony before flying back to the UK on their planned flight, with her leg in a cast. There she learned from NHS doctors that the surgery had not been done the way UK doctors would do it, and she needed another surgery to ‘fix’ it.
Shannon has had to learn how to walk again and remains in pain as she awaits her second procedure in December – following which she will need “years of physio”. The horror holiday has left her with a fear of wet floors and boats and too “freaked out” to book another trip away.
Shannon, a private tutor, from Epsom, Surrey, said: “We thought the pirate ship boat trip looked really fun. But as I stepped into the toilet I slipped and my leg snapped. My leg was swollen and wonky and my husband had to carry me back up the stairs.
“It turned out my leg was broken in three places and I also dislocated my ankle – it was agony. Back in the UK, I couldn’t walk for eight weeks – but it still hurts to walk now and I can only wear flip flops. I’ll be off my feet again after my second surgery and I’ll need physio for a long time after.
“It spoiled our first family holiday.”
Shannon and the family flew out on May 6, after the parents had saved up £2.5k for it. Everything was going swimmingly until the boat trip which saw Shannon go head-over-heels after slipping on the wet floor near the toilet. She said: “I heard my leg snap, and another man behind me said he heard it snap too.”
Shannon’s husband carried her back up to the deck but the family were informed they had to wait until the end of the boat trip to go to hospital as they couldn’t dock. Five hours later Shannon was taken to hospital and x-rays revealed the extent of the damage.
She said: “I was told I needed surgery as the bone was completely snapped and it could pierce a vein. They had to manipulate my leg before – I was screaming in pain.”
The following morning saw Shannon go for her two-hour surgery with an epidural for the pain – which she said was “horrific”.
She spent three nights in hospital with next to no pain relief due to being restricted while breastfeeding her youngest. Then on the final day, after complaining more forcefully about her pain, she was given pethidine – a strong opioid medication used for pain management.
Shannon said: “It practically knocked me out – and then the next thing the doctor came to talk to me, and I was high as a kite.”
After her wound was cleaned and her cast replaced, she was cleared to fly home. She said: “When we went to A&E back home, my leg was so swollen from the flight. Then I was told the screws put into my leg in Turkey were too long, and I would need another surgery to replace them.”
Since then, Shannon has been going for weekly x-rays and scans to check on progress. She couldn’t walk at all for eight weeks before she could finally start wearing a supportive boot. Now she’s back on her feet but can only walk for 20 minutes at a time before it becomes painful, and she can only wear a flip flop due to the swelling.
After her surgery at the end of the year she’ll have to go through the process again – and re-learn to walk for the second time with potentially “years of physiotherapy” to follow. She said: “It was a nightmare and has left a sour taste in my mouth.
“It was our first holiday as a family of four and it was spoiled. I haven’t been on a boat since and even the thought of swimming gives me anxiety because of the wet floor. It’s still painful for me every time I walk. I feel like I need a second holiday after the trauma of this one.
“But the thought of going away again freaks me out.”
The company providing the boat trip described it as “an unfortunate incident”. The company said they offered to take her off the boat via a smaller inflatable vessel, known as a Zodiac boat, but that Shannon said her injury meant she couldn’t get on the boat.
Once on land one of the company took her by private car to the hospital for treatment. The company said: “They did not make any complaints and thanked us while leaving.”