A YOUNG Irish man who was beaten and left for dead in a brutal attack in Australia has woken from a seven-month coma.
David Keohane (29), from Ballyvolane in Cork city, was working in Sydney when he was found with serious head injuries on a street in August of last year.
He was airlifted to Cork University Hospital (CUH) last September and had been in a coma since. The HSE has confirmed that Mr Keohane’s condition is now “comfortable”, after he opened his eyes for the first time in months on St Patrick’s Day.
Mr Keohane is awake and talking but still requires medical care. His parents, Tom and Rita, have spent months visiting the hospital in the hope of him making it this far. It is thought Mr Keohane will be in hospital for at least another six weeks.
The flooring contractor was left for dead after being attacked while walking home from a party in the beachside suburb of Coogee, a popular area for tourists, on August 9th last year.
His head injuries were so severe it took police 48 hours to identify him and he had to undergo facial reconstructive surgery. Mr Keohane had returned from a visit to his family in Cork a few days prior to the attack and had sent his mother a text earlier that night to say he was having a great time at the party.
Mr Keohane, who is a permanent resident of Australia, moved to Sydney four years ago to set up a flooring business. He volunteered as a telephone counsellor for the charity service Lifeline, which is comparable to the Samaritans.
He was also heavily involved with the Young Ireland and Michael Cusack GAA clubs and represented New South Wales in the Australian Gaelic football championships in 2007.
Australian airline Qantas modified the first-class section of one of its aircraft to accommodate his stretcher, medical equipment and medical staff in order to transport him from Sydney to London last September.
The Keohane family were upset when they couldn’t arrange a flight to Cork after Aer Lingus said it was unable to meet David’s needs. His sister Sinéad made a plea for help on RTÉ’s Liveline programme.
David Hall, managing director of Lifeline Ambulances in Kildare, stepped in to provide free air ambulance transport for the family from Heathrow to Cork Airport, and road transport to CUH.
Three people have been charged in connection with the attack on Mr Keohane. A 19-year-old man was charged last October with attempted murder and aggravated robbery in connection with the assault. A 39-year-old man and a 19-year-old woman were also charged with hindering police and concealing a serious offence.