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‘Please help us bring Sam’s body back home’
Friends of a young Bristol man who died just six weeks after starting a new life in Thailand are urging people to support a fundraising campaign to bring his body back home.
Sam Austin, 26, bought a one-way ticket to the south-east Asian country less than two months ago, without travel insurance.
But his new life was tragically cut short when his body was discovered last weekend.
Friends are desperate for details of what happened to the “free spirit” who had lived in Bedminster, Totterdown and St George previously.
Sam’s mother was told the news by British embassy officials via Avon and Somerset police at the weekend, and a friend in the Thai capital Bangkok identified his body yesterday.
This morning, some £6,000 of the near £12,000 needed to bring Sam’s body home had been raised by friends. A special fundraising evening at the Big Chill Bar in the city centre has been organised for next Wednesday.
Speaking to Bristol24/7, Jonna Russell said his long-time friend had been “incredibly well known”.
“He was just known as being Sam, a free spirit who had more friends than I had ever known,” he said.
“Sam had travelled on his own to Brazil and Thailand, and decided to go out there on a one-way ticket to start a new life. He saved his money and just went, and would come up with a plan once he got there.
“No one has any idea what happened to him. All we know is that there was an accident. His mum, the only person he had, was told on Saturday and we found out soon after.
“Because it was not a holiday and on a one-way ticket, he had no travel insurance, and it will cost between £8,000 to £12,000 to bring him back home. So I helped to set up the fundraising campaign straight away with friends. We made about £4,000 almost straight away and we’re setting up fundraising nights next week and a big club night at the end of December.”
A Facebook page has been set up to publicise the fundraising page and has gained more than 500 fans in the last few days.
On it, friends wrote: “Sam would be proud that we as a group are looking after his mum, the one promise we can defo keep. Keep the pics and memories flowing in as we aim to create a book for his mum in his memory.”
More than £5,750 has now been raised via the GoGetFunding website.
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