Heartbreak as 'superfit' man dies of 'silent killer' after thinking it was 'flu'
A man has tragically died days after thinking he had flu over Christmas, leaving his loved ones heartbroken.
Neil Stretton, 41, contracted sepsis and died after going into cardiac arrest on January 3 as paramedics desperately tried to keep him alive.
His sister Lynn Stretton, 37, said their father died aged 63 of bone marrow cancer on Christmas Eve in 2016 - and since then, her brother would normally go abroad over the holidays as he could not handle the pain.
She said Neil had just moved into a house with his girlfriend Ellie Griffiths and the couple had hosted Christmas Day, with Ellie saying it was "the happiest she had ever seen him".
However, on Boxing Day Neil and Ellie thought he had the flu, when in fact it was Klebsiella pneumonia - a bacterium that can cause severe infections in your lungs, bladder, brain, liver, eyes, blood, and wounds.
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Neil died on January 3, days after spending Christmas with his familyIt tragically spread to Neil's lungs and then to his bloodstream where it caused sepsis.
Lynn told Staffordshire Live: "Neil tripped going up the stairs. His foot swelled up. At County Hospital A&E they said it was too swollen to x-ray. They told him to come back on January 4 when the swelling would have gone down."
But on the morning of January 3, Ellie called an ambulance as Neil's condition had worsened. They told her it would be a seven-hour wait, and Lynn headed over to help get Neil, a keen cyclist, to the car.
However, as she raced to the house, an ambulance passed her. Neil was taken to Queen's Hospital, in Burton. He had been in cardiac arrest in the back of the ambulance.
Lynn added: "Because he was only 41, I thought he would be fine. Ellie said 'I think they're doing CPR because the ambulance is rocking'. We followed in my car. They worked on him at the hospital for 20 minutes. They said there was nothing they could do.
"He was a keen cyclist. He did the Chase the Sun challenge in one day. How could someone so fit and healthy die? That was the hardest thing when it came back that he had died of natural causes. I think I'd be more accepting if it was a road traffic accident. It was his birthday on July 18."
Lynn is walking 10,000 steps every day in July and has so far raised £490 for The UK Sepsis Trust in honour of warehouse worker Neil.
She added: "He had a very dark sense of humour. He genuinely cared and if you ever needed him he would be the first person there. He was a massive Star Wars fan. He was full of life. He lived life to the full. He went to Glastonbury. There are so many funny stories."
Partner Ellie Griffiths lived in Abbots Bromley with Neil. Neil worked at BSS Birmingham Smethwick as a warehouse worker.
Ellie said: "He was unique. He was the world's number one wind-up merchant but had you laughing with him. He genuinely cared for everyone, and despite describing himself as grumpy, he would light up a room with his infectious laugh."
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You can donate to Lynn's fundraiser here.
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