Polio couldn’t sink Eric
ERIC Collins is a polio survivor but has still sailed halfway around the world, ending up in Townsville, which he has called home for more than 50 years.
Mr Collins was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, where he was diagnosed with polio at age 12.
Polio, a virus which can cause paralysis, is largely preventable these days by vaccination but was once rife.
Mr Collins, now 82, became ill with flu- like symptoms and fell asleep for 24 hours. When he woke, all he could remember was being driven to the nearest hospital, where he ended up staying in an iron lung for six months.
As polio is infectious, he was not allowed to see any visitors — even family.
“I couldn’t tell you how long I was in that iron lung, with it breathing for me. It seemed like forever,” Mr Collins said. “There were children who died in the ward while I was there.”
It took him about two years to be able to walk again but he never recovered full mobility, frequently falling.
Determined to live as normally as possible, Mr Collins was able to finish school, despite being ostracised by other students, and became a merchant seaman working in Durban. It was here he met his wife, Syd.
“He one day came to my church. I spotted him and thought he was all right and thought I would grab him. Because he had polio he couldn’t run fast enough,” Mrs Collins joked.
They have now been mar- ried for 60 years, having four children.
When their children were teenagers they decided to leave South Africa, and set sail for Australia in a 13m sailing ketch.
“It was wonderful,” Mrs Collins said. “We had no money but had wonderful adventures. We sailed north ( in Australia) until we found people who didn’t know what cardigans were.” That was in Townsville. Mr Collins worked as a boat designer, while Mrs Collins was a legal secretary.
When Mr Collins was in his 50s the after- effects of his illness got worse and he was diagnosed with polio syndrome, which caused him to fall more often.
“He’s the bravest and most stoic person I’ve met, he must be because he stuck with me for all these years,” Mrs Collins said.
In 1985, Mr Collins was a foundation member of the Townsville Post Polio Group. The group continues to this day but Mr Collins said there were now fewer members.
Today is World Polio Day to commemorate the birth of polio vaccination pioneer Jonas Salk.
“Having a day to commemorate the progress we’ve made in eliminating polio in Australia is a wonderful idea. I think many people now don’t realise just how debilitating it has been,” Mr Collins said.