‘24 hours after the photo she collapsed and later died’

THIS is the last photo a father took together with his daughter before she died just days later.

Jade Davies was a devoted young mother who adored her son Sonny, five, her family, partner and friends and was happy and content.

But she was suddenly taken ill. The 30-year-old from Pontllanfraith, Blackwood, had been complaining of headaches, but nothing seemed to be amiss until she was discovered collapsed on the floor of her home by her brother.

Despite surgeons’ best efforts to save her, Jade died. She never regained consciousness.

Less than 24 hours before her collapse, Jade and her father Kevin Davies had been walking up Mynyddislwyn after sharing breakfast together and decided to take a selfie with a pony they had come across.

Kevin said: “We were just having a laugh, and less than 24 hours after that selfie she had collapsed.”

Before Jade had been taken ill, her mother Carla Bromley had travelled to New York. The family’s get-together to see her off was the final time she saw her daughter.

She said: “I will always remember our final kiss and cwtch before leaving.”

While she was away, on Friday, January 25, Carla received a call from her daughter, who said she had a pain behind her eyes and she felt sick.

Carla told Jade to go to her sister’s house and asked her son Kody to go and check on her.

Describing the scene Kody faced, Carla said: “Kody found that all the lights were on and all the doors were locked. He tried looking through a crack in her front blinds.

“He rang me and he said he had been banging and knocking. He ran to a different window and could see Jade lying on the floor. He could see something was terribly wrong, so he broke the door down.”

Jade was taken to the Royal Gwent Hospital in Newport before being transferred to the University Hospital of Wales in Cardiff.

It later transpired that she had suffered a spontaneous intracerebral haemorrhage – a bleed in the brain. In Jade’s case, it was possibly caused by a congenital condition present at birth. The bleed caused Jade’s brain to swell repeatedly, causing progressive damage.

Dad Kevin said: “The neurosurgeon explained that when that bleed happened, that was essentially it. We are all devastated and in shock.

“From the initial phone call, it’s almost disbelief this has happened to someone so healthy. That disbelief turned into reality when I saw Jade. For me it was the shock actually seeing her in the hospital bed and seeing her so vulnerable and in the hands of the gods.

“From that shock, reality kicks in and the doctor takes you into a family room and you’re told what the prognosis is and what the likelihood of survival is.

“When you hear those words, the fact she may never recover and might die from her injuries, it’s another emotional slide from that point,” Kevin said.

Despite Jade’s fight to stay alive and the immense efforts of the neurosurgeons, she died at 3.55pm on Monday, January 28.

Jade’s brother Kody, a professional boxer, said: “I went from hoping she would pull through to hoping she could find peace. We always had a massive spiritual connection with Jade. My mam was by her bedside all the time, as we all were, and it was unbelievable to see that connection.”

Since Jade’s death, thousands of tributes have been posted on social media describing the loving and funny person she was.

“It brought me a lot of comfort seeing all the messages on social media and the hundreds of flowers, cards and gifts we’ve received”, said Carla. “It showed me how kind people are and made me feel very proud and realise what Jade meant to a lot of people.

“She was just an amazing mother to Sonny and they shared a special bond. She absolutely idolised him and he idolised her.

“The other day I saw a little love heart with ‘Mum’ on it that she bought me. She was always buying something to make us feel special.

“She was an amazing daughter and a much-loved granddaughter, niece and cousin with the biggest heart and I miss her so much.”

Kevin added: “Jade was very loving, she was always cracking a joke and having us all in tears. It was infectious and spread throughout her family and friends. We’re really missing that character she had.”

The family are now urging people to get checked if they are having severe headaches, especially if there is a family history of this condition.

As a tribute to Jade, who was a regular at Pontllanfraith Rugby Club, there will be a minute’s silence at the club’s first home game since her death, on February 16, and balloons will be released in her honour.

Her funeral will take place at St Tudor’s Church, in Mynyddiswlyn, Blackwood, on February 25 at 11am. This was the last picture Kevin Davies took with his daughter Jade. Less than 24 hours after it she collapsed and later died and below, Jade, far left, with, from left, her father Kevin Davies, brother Kody Davies, sister Eden Davies and mother Carla Bromley