A 30-year-old Brisbane man has died unexpectedly on the Sunshine Coast from heatstroke, just weeks before the birth of his first child.
Matthew Hall, a young and healthy Virgin Australia pilot and a dad-to-be died of heatstroke after collapsing on the Sunshine Coast while out dirt bike riding. He leaves behind his high school sweetheart, heavily pregnant and now a widow at just 30.
According to sources, Hall was in the Beerburrum State Forest when he was struck down with heatstroke. He was dirt bike riding, and temperatures were in the low 30’s. Hall began to feel unwell, and paramedics were called. However, by the time the paramedic team reached him, he was confused and very hot.
Health professionals noted that critical heatstroke starts with internal body temperatures of 41 degrees. Matthew’s temperature was already 42. This meant that his organs were already in the process of shutting down, and he deteriorated further as he was taken via rescue helicopter to the hospital. Unfortunately he later died. His son is due to just two weeks.
Hall’s wife Emily described her husband has her “best friend and soul mate” saying that she “can’t fathom life without him but my strength is knowing he will live through his son”.
“I will love him enough for the two of us and I will make sure I do Matt proud and be the best mum to him,” Emily said in a wonderful tribute.
Heatstroke A Major Concern
Statistics suggest that, following head injury, one of the biggest concerns for dirt bike riders is heat stress. Dr Chris Zappala said to 7News it was incredibly important to maintain water intake on hot days, as people often underestimated how much water they were losing.
“When you’re in a really, really hot environment working quite hard it can be like seven to 10 litres a day, it can be enormous the amount of sweat we are losing,” he said.
Experts are urging Brisbane residents to be cautious in the coming weeks, as high temperatures are expected to continue for the next few days.
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