23-year-old died in church skylight fall
TRAGIC ACCIDENT AFTER NIGHT OUT CLAIMED LIFE OF N. WALES MAN LIVING IN AUSTRALIA
AN “amazing” North Wales man who could “light up a room with his smile” died in a tragic accident in Australia.
Jordan Joseph Baker was just 23 when he died after falling through a church skylight, an inquest in Caernarfon heard.
Jordan, from Minffordd in Gwynedd, had been living in Surfer’s Paradise in Queensland with his girlfriend Erin.
He’d been there for five months and was “living his best life”, his family said.
The hearing was told how Jordan had always wanted to live in Australia, with his family saying he was “living his dream” and was “very happy”.
On the day of his death, in February 2019, Jordan had been out with friends for drinks. They were walking back towards the hotel where one of the group, Mitchell Phillpotts, was staying, when Jordan and Mr Phillpotts decided to climb to the top of a church.
Speaking during the hearing, Mr Phillpotts told of how the pair climbed up together and stepped over a skylight on their way up before sitting at the top of the building for around 15 minutes.
He said: “He started to follow me back down.
“On the way back, I stepped over the skylight as we had done on the way up.
“I don’t remember hearing anything, we were just talking at the time and then I didn’t hear him talking anymore.
“I turned around and he had fallen through the skylight. I don’t remember hearing glass break.”
Mr Phillpotts broke the door to the church to help Jordan, who was on the ground unresponsive, before shouting to a friend to call the emergency services.
Jordan was pronounced dead at the scene. The postmortem examination, which was carried out in Australia before his body was repatriated, showed Jordan sustained “multiple injuries” in the fall.
In a statement read out at the inquest, Jordan’s mother, Jill Mawson, described her son as an “amazing” person who was always “full of energy and enthusiasm”.
She said: “We want to remember Jordan not for how he died but for how he lived.
“He loved life and was an amazing son, grandson, brother, nephew, partner and friend.
“He was loved and adored by all who were lucky enough to know him. Jordan was so full of energy and enthusiasm and had a zest for adventure – he was happiest when climbing mountains, surfing and snowboarding.
“He loved getting to know people and had a genuine interest in people’s lives and loved listening to people’s stories.
“His main goal was always to help anyone who needed help and support and he showered us all with his love.
“His smile could light up a room and his kindness and ability to see the best in everyone is what we are most proud of.
“He will always be our shining star and the love for our boy is forever strong.”
Acting senior coroner Katie Sutherland concluded Jordan had died as the result of an accident and his death had been both unexpected and unintended.
Ms Sutherland said: “It brings home how tragic some things can end up.
“Jordan had clearly been living his best life and doing what he wanted to do.
“These are very tragic circumstances.”
A Gofundme page was set up by his sister, Alicia
Baker, along with the Jordan Baker Foundation with the idea of making a “positive difference in people’s lives”.
More than £31,000 was raised in Jordan’s memory through the site.
An Instagram page, JB Travelling Tributes, was also set up, with the family encouraging anyone who was influenced by Jordan to write his initials or a tribute to him on a rock, pebble, shell or leaf and leave it in a location while on a hike, visiting a beach or travelling somewhere new.
The picture of the tribute would then be added to the Instagram page to inspire others to travel and enjoy life as Jordan did.