Accident leaves young York father in a coma in Cambodia – friends launch £50K fundraising appeal

An accident has left a young York father in a coma in Cambodia.

Now his friends have launched a fundraising appeal to pay for his mounting hospital bills – with the hope he can come home soon.

Joe Quarcoo Morrissey lives in Cambodia with his partner Emilie and their baby Saul.

Earlier this month Joe was travelling on his scooter when he was in a road accident. It has left him in a coma in intensive care in hospital.

His former schoolmate and friend, York musician Dan Lucas, has launched the fundraising campaign to help pay his medical fees. Less than 24 hours after it began, the fund has already reached £10K of its £50K goal.

Super kind and loving

Dan described Joe, a former pupil of York Steiner School and All Saints, as “an absolutely great guy”.

“He’s really happy go lucky, super kind and thoughtful. He is as handsome as hell and a great footballer and athlete. He is a great friend and a loving father,” he writes on the GoFundMe page.

“He brought his baby to the UK at Christmas and it was amazing to see how proud he is of his little boy.”

Dan adds:

• So, it was unbelievably shocking for everyone to hear that just a few weeks later Joe was involved in a serious accident in Cambodia.

  He is in a coma in intensive care and has been there since the first week in February.

Bills hit £3K a week

Joe’s mum Ernestina, dad Kevin and sister Rhianna are doing all they can. Ernestina has flown out to be with him.

But the costs of Joe’s care are mounting up. Medical bills are already £3,000 a week. He has no health insurance so his family will have to find this money until he is safely out of the coma and able to travel home.

Joe lives in Otres Beach, about 60 miles south west of Cambodian capital Pnomh Penh. He runs a hostel there with wife Emilie.

Dan says: “Together with all his friends, we are trying to help Joe’s family at this awful time. We realise that raising money is only one thing we can do but we would like to help reduce the stress on his family.”

The comments from people donating to the appeal underline how well-liked Joe is.

“Joe is a lovely young man and noone has a bad word to say about him. Come on Joe you can do this, your a fighter,” one said.

Another remembered him as a lovely boy now “growing into a polite, funny and very handsome young man”.