Georgia's mum, Emma, has started a Facebook page to update people on her daughter's condition, and raise awareness of the importance of helmets. Photo / Facebook / Georgia on my mind
Georgia's mum, Emma, has started a Facebook page to update people on her daughter's condition, and raise awareness of the importance of helmets. Photo / Facebook / Georgia on my mind
As her daughter lies in intensive care following a skateboard acident, a British mum has made an emotional video warning parents about the importance of wearing a helmet.
Emma Fairthorne, from Bournemouth, UK, said in the Facebook video that her 19-year-old daughter had suffered a severe head injury from falling off a skateboard.
On August 5, Georgia had been chatting outside wih her sisters, when they decided to have a turn on the board.
Half an hour later, one of Georgia's relatives came running into the house yelling "it's Georgia."
An acquaintance in a passing car drove a distraught Emma to where her daughter lay on the footpath, having just regained consciousness after a seizure.
She was rushed to hospital, and placed in an induced coma after having emergency surgery on her brain.
In the heartbreaking video, Georgia's mum Emma is standing outside the hospital, crying as she tells parents to be aware of the dangers of skateboards.
"It's my baby girl in there," she says. "Please please, I know it's not cool to wear a helmet, but please take care."
Emma said the family didn't have a helmet for Georgia, and that she just didn't think of the possible danger. The teenager had not been going fast, but the board had hit a stone, causing her to fall.
"She didn't go down a massive hill," Emma said. "But she fell, and then she fitted. I wish as a mum that I had provided her with a helmet."
Georgia is now in a stable condition in hospital, but doctors are unsure of what her future will look like. Photo / Facebook
The Facebook video has been viewed more than 800,000 times, and shared more than 11,700 times. Emma hopes her family's story will help to raise awareness of the issue.
Through the Facebook page, Georgia on my Mind, Emma keeps friends and family updated about her daughter's prgress. The family have also set up a fundraising page to help with expenses during Georgia's recovery.
Following the accident, Georgia has battled issues associated with a traumatic brain injury, including problems with brain pressure, excess fluids and heavy sedation.
"I'm just praying now that the best possible outcome happens for her, whatever that is," Emma says in the video.
"I don't know what quality of life she's going to have if she makes it though the next few days. My beautiful, beautiful girl.
"That should have been a broken ankle or a broken wrist or a few cuts and scrapes, but not brain surgery and intensive care.
"Take care of your kids and get them a helmet when they're on their scooters or skateboards."
