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Friends of a much-loved Paisley man who fell into a coma on holiday in Mexico are raising £10,000 to bring him home.

Jamie Wilson, 41, has been left stranded in a Cancun hospital after falling seriously ill while on a trip away with his family.

Jamie, who suffers from spina bifida, was on a getaway with his grandparents and niece when he started experiencing severe pain shortly after arriving.

He was rushed to the nearest hospital where he underwent surgery for a twisted bowel.

During surgery things turned from bad to worse when complications left him with a punctured lung.

Jamie, an avid ice hockey fan, then tragically fell into a coma and has been unresponsive since Friday, October 5.

Now friends are rallying together to raise the £10,000 needed to bring Jamie home.

Pal Susan Gibson was inspired to start the Go Fund Me page after receiving a devastating phonecall from Jamie’s parents.

Susan, 37, told the Express: “His parents contacted us to let us know what happened - I was absolutely devastated when I heard the news.

“His parents and niece have flown out to be with him but it sounds awful. The doctors and the nurses don’t speak English and I can imagine they have so many questions.

“They are dealing with an interpreter right now. It must be so hard for them.

“There has been a problem with his insurance and Jamie’s parents are having to come up with the cost until it is sorted.”

Susan is now appealing for help to raise £10,000 to cover Jamie’s medical costs, as well as pay for a return flight and ambulance from the airport.

She said: “We’ve been told it is going to cost far more than £10,000.

“So this is just a start – the main goal right now is just to get him home.”

Susan is rallying together with Jamie’s local pub, Bar Varia, in Braehead, to help raise the funds and says the response so far has been overwhelming.

She said: “Jamie is such a popular guy and everyone in Bar Varia knows him so well, as he’s in there most weekends. All the staff and customers love him.

“You can tell how popular he is from the fundraising page – we made £2,000 in the first 24 hours.

“The response has been overwhelming. So many people have donated and got in touch to say what an amazing guy he is.”

Susan, who met Jamie nine years ago when working in the bar, says despite his battle with spina bifida Jamie has always lived life to the full.

She said: “He loves to spend time with his family they took him to Benidorm earlier this year.

“They usually have the time of their lives, so to hear that he is now in a coma is just devastating and so unexpected.

“We just have our fingers crossed that he pulls through and gets a chance to see how loved he is.”

If you would like to donate, please go to www.gofundme.com/get-jamie-home