Man stranded in Magaluf after Lightning McQueen shoes left him with brain injury

A 24-year-old man was left stranded abroad after bruising on the brain prevented him from flying back from a lads holiday. Callum Richens’ trip with his friends took a twist after his ‘Lightning McQueen’ Croc-style shoes caught on a marble floor and sent him tumbling down a flight of stairs. “I don’t remember the fall at all,” said Callum, from Bournemouth. “I just remember waking up to everyone panicking around me. Me and the group were all having drinks when my Lightning McQueen Crocs caught the marble floor in the villa and sent me flying down the stairs.” The logistics worker was partying with friends in Magaluf, Spain. Following the fall, Callum was rushed to hospital after an excruciating two- hour wait for the ambulance on May 4. Two scans revealed he had fractured his eye socket, had bruising on the brain and has done possible damage to his neck. He required six stitches and was stuck on an IV drip without being able to have food or water before the scans. He said: “I stayed in the hospital until Tuesday afternoon (May 5). I was originally meant to fly home early Wednesday morning, but the doctors advised against it. Instead, I booked myself into a hotel for a week to recover on my own.” Callum was left behind by his mates and he spent the next few days trying to recover from the injury. By May 9, he felt good enough to fly home, booking an 11am flight – but h e woke up in the early hours of the morning with food poisoning. Callum said: “By Saturday I felt good enough to fly home, so I booked an 11am flight Then disaster struck again. I woke up in the middle of the night with food poisoning from the hotel and was being sick every hour from 2am until 6am. “Somehow, I still dragged myself through the airport and made it home. My mate Josh picked me up from Bristol Airport and I went straight to the hospital for another check-up and scan.” Fortunately, the bruising on the brain had healed and there were no longer any concerns around the injury to his neck. The stitches have since been removed and he is returning to work today.