SINGAPORE: Travis Surch was at the top of his high-flying career when he was crushed by a chandelier.

He had been working at a luxury hotel on the Gold Coast when the ornate fixture fell from the ceiling in 2014.

The then-33-year-old woke up in intensive care, surrounded by medical staff, with no memory of what had happened.

“I was in the prime years of my life,” he said.

“I went to work one day, then I woke up in a hospital bed.”

Mr Surch, now aged 45, suffered multiple spinal fractures and a traumatic brain injury, leading to 30 per cent memory loss.

He has undergone 36 surgeries in 12 years, lives with intense chronic pain and takes a cocktail of medication to be able to go about his day.

“Every day is a battle,” he said.

“Some days I was in so much pain, I wanted my mum and dad to get a chainsaw and cut my arms or my legs off.”

On July 25, 2014, Mr Surch had arrived to work early to prepare for a busy day in his events and marketing role.

“I walked into the hotel about 6am, suit and tie on, ready to go,” he said.

“I came in early to make sure everything would run smoothly because we had a big day of meetings ahead.

“The night before, there had been an event in the bar and temporary chandeliers and crystal lighting was hanging from the ceiling.”

As Mr Surch walked in, the chandelier collapsed from the ceiling.

“Initially it was a vertical impact but then I fell to the ground and the rest of the framing fell on me as well,” he said.

“The next thing I knew, I woke up in hospital with a broken neck, broken back, brain damage … I didn’t understand what had happened to me.

“When the chandelier fell from the ceiling, it split my head open, fractured my neck in three spots.

“It was a weird feeling being stuck in ICU and not recalling what had happened to you.”

Mr Surch fractured his spine in five places, suffered a traumatic brain injury and 63 per cent whole body impairment.

“That’s very high,” he said.

“People say to me now ‘oh, but you look fine’ and I do get sick of hearing that.

“I have metal all throughout my body.”

He spent six weeks in a Gold Coast hospital, including 11 days in intensive care, after the accident before being transferred to Brisbane Private Hospital for six months and then Greenslopes Private Hospital for further rehabilitation.

He was regularly in and out of hospital until 2017, forced to get around in a wheelchair as he learnt to walk and talk again.

“It was very hard,” he said.

“I had to write on post-it notes (to communicate).

“I would try to speak but nothing would come out … only air would come out.

“I couldn’t eat properly so I was on a lot of juices which wasn’t good for my health.”

To fund his treatment and surgeries, Mr Surch was forced to sell his two properties in Southport, a tea and coffee plantation in Asia with his ex-partner, and move back in with his parents.

“I was in very dark place at times,” he said.

“But I did my rehab with a lot of Vietnam War veterans … and hearing their stories makes you think ‘it’s OK, it’s going to be OK’.

“They have some horrific stories.”

In 2017, he went overseas for a round of frozen stem cell treatment, hoping it wouldease his daily pain.

“Spending a lot of time in a hospital bed, I did a lot of research,” he said.

“I thought I was invincible, I saw a huge improvement in my chronic pain (after the treatment) … I saw about an 80 per cent improvement.

“I was then feeling good enough to try and go back to work on light duties but it just wasn’t working.”

The health improvements started to fade by the end of 2018 so he went back overseas for a second round of treatment.

“I was told it would last longer but it didn’t,” he said.

Mr Surch, with the help of his friends and loved ones, is now fundraising to head back overseas for a third round of stem cell treatment, this time with the hope of using fresh cells.

“The hope of stem cell surgery is to help my cells regenerate quicker and hopefully it will help my spider web of issues,” he said.

One close friend rallying around him is Gold Coast-based hairdressing business mogul Oscar Cullinan.

The pair met more than 25 years ago on the Gold Coast social’s scene at Berlin Bar.

“We just organically became mates,” Mr Cullinan said.

“Travis is a genuine guy, pure and simple.

“He was the happiest guy in the room … he was so approachable and full of life.

“Looking back I believe those attributes he had in spades has got him as far as he’s come today.”

Mr Cullinan said it wasn’t until some years after the accident that he became aware of the seriousness of his friend’s injuries.

“Travis has shown pure resilience. I’ve never seen anything like it,” he said.

“No one deserves his pain and suffering, it’s shocking (but) Travis shows up every day, he’s a brave man of character and his tenacity puts most to shame.”

Today, Mr Surch has a full-time carer, uses a mobility walker to get around and a strict daily routine to manage his chronic pain.

He still has weekly appointments with physiotherapists, osteopaths, psychologists, neurologists and pain specialists.

“You have to be very resilient to do the same thing months and months and even years on end,” he said.

Despite a traumatic 12 years in and out of hospital, Mr Surch still hopes to one day return to the job he loved so much.

“I feel pretty worthless that I can’t contribute to society and work.

“I’d love to get back into sports management … I’m too unreliable at the moment with my condition.

“It’s been a very big journey.

“I had a lot of dark moments but then you have times where you see improvements and that shows you there is light at the end of the tunnel.”