Damian Langley, 47, fell seriously ill at Qatar airport during a stopover on his journey home to Manchester, with his devastated family now facing £11,000 in repatriation costs
A “kind-hearted” man who “lived to make people laugh” has tragically passed away while returning from a holiday in Thailand. Damian Langley, 47, shared photos and videos of himself enjoying his holiday after flying out with mates earlier this month.
The 47-year-old was scheduled to return to Manchester Airport on April 21, but his journey took a heartbreaking twist. On April 19, his sister Nicola, 31, received a call from one of his friends informing her that her brother had suddenly fallen ill, according to Echo.
She said: “They didn’t want to worry me. He had asked them not to tell me. But he had abdominal pains and he was complaining of seeing things. He was hallucinating. I said can you put him on the phone to me, but they said he’s asleep at the moment, he hadn’t been sleeping well.”
Nicola was reassured not to fret, and that the group would be back in St Helens by Thursday, April 23. They travelled from Bangkok to Qatar on April 21, but while waiting for their connecting flight back to Manchester, Damian’s condition dramatically worsened.
Nicola recounted: “On the fight to Qatar he said ‘I really don’t feel well. I’ve got the worst pain in my tummy I’ve ever had’. So they took him to the medical centre at the Qatar airport. The medical people said he’s not going to make the flight, but gave him fluids and said they’d put him on the 7.30am flight on April 22nd, which would have brought him to Manchester for 2.30pm.”
Damian’s mates returned to the UK, while Nicola readied herself to collect her brother from the airport the next day. However, after numerous calls to Qatar airport, she was eventually informed that Damian’s boarding pass remained open – indicating he never boarded the plane.
The subsequent 24 hours were filled with distress as she reached out to hospitals across Qatar, attempting to discover what had happened to her brother.
Nicola expressed: “It felt like someone was sat on my chest. I couldn’t concentrate. I was stood outside my work car park on the phone getting so frustrated because I was in a frenzy trying to find out how to get hold of him.”
Tragically, the family was delivered the most devastating news via a police visit around 8.45am on Friday, April 24. They were informed Damian’s condition had drastically deteriorated, and he had been admitted to intensive care at the Al Wakra Hospital in Qatar. He succumbed to pancreatitis and organ failure, passing away on April 23.
His loved ones now confront a daunting financial struggle, as repatriating Damian’s body to the UK could cost up to £11,000. Sadly, the labourer, a resident of Parr, had not secured insurance before his trip – a fact unknown to his family.
Nicola shared her emotional turmoil: “For me, it’s like I’m trying to get all of this sorted so he’ll come home and walk through the door. It doesn’t feel like I’m bringing him home only for him not to be here any more.
“Working to get him home is like I’ve got a purpose. When you’re just sat there with your own thoughts, it hits you like a ton of bricks. I just found myself sitting in his bedroom looking at his stuff. My mum and dad were in bits. He was their first child and my mum was just 17 when he was born. They’re really not coping well.
“I’ve been at my mum’s house since Friday, and for 48 hours we didn’t have a minute of sleep, because as soon as you get five minutes of silence we’re sobbing. It got to the point we crashed and had a few hours sleep. But then you wake up in the morning and it hits you in the face straight away.”
Nicola revealed that Damian had previously battled with alcohol, but had abstained from drinking for roughly two years before embarking on his trip to Thailand. She speculated that he might not have informed his family about the holiday, aware that he would be surrounded by people drinking and partying.
She revealed: “He didn’t tell my dad because he knew he’d say ‘why go there when you know they’re all going to be drinking?’. The day he went, he said he was going to the gym – but in his bag was all of his stuff for Thailand, and he messaged our mum when he was out there.
“Damian lived every day as it came. He wanted everything to be fun. He was always laughing, trying to make everyone laugh, coming out with one-liners. Our middle brother is very serious, and they were completely chalk and cheese.
“His dog was his absolute world. He was called Jackson but we called him nightmare. If you saw the dog, you knew Damian wouldn’t be far away. Because he always had the dog to go home to, it gave him that stability.
“He was very caring. if there was ever a problem he’d listen to you and give advice you’d never even think of, and give a different spin on things. He’d give you his last pound. If he had a pound you both had 50p.
“All he ever wanted was to make you laugh. He was always cracking jokes and making people laugh or doing daft things. He lived to make people giggle.
“He was obsessed with gadgets and fixing things. He still has four bikes in my dad’s garage that he was fixing for his friends.”
A digital fundraising campaign initiated by Damian’s mate Melissa Newman aims to gather £7,000 towards bringing his body back to the UK and his funeral expenses.
Melissa stated: “As I’m sure those of you who knew Dame, knew he was a larger than life character, and put a smile on everyone’s face. He brightened every room he was in, I’m sure his friends and family would agree there was never a dull moment when Dame was around.
“We’ve created this Gofundme to help raise funds to bring Dame home, as he passed away overseas this can be costly but we want to help his family in any way we can so we can give him a proper send off and say our goodbyes.”