Dying dad tried contacting daughter on WhatsApp for 4 days but she mistook it for a silly prank

Our parents have been the shade over our heads in all phases of life. We see them as superheroes who cannot be taken down by anything. But we often forget that they are humans as well, who can get weak as they grow older. The time you spend with them is extremely precious.

A woman recently lost her father in the most heartbreaking way possible. A University of London student, Dannie Lynch was surprised when she received random messages from her father, Martin Lynch, residing in Cambodia. Not paying heed to it on time is something she will regret every day.

The 72-year-old man, who is a London-born NHS drug counselor, collapsed in his home because of pneumonia and wasn't treated for four days, reported by The Mirror. Help arrived four days later but it was too late. They found him on the floor of his home and rushed him to the hospital where he passed away on January 12. All the while he was on the floor, too sick to move, he tried informing his daughter but all she received were some bizarre WhatsApp messages.

At the time, all the 29-year-old could think of was that her father was playing a prank. She thought Martin had just found the stickers option on the messaging app and was "being silly." Dannie recalled, “I got some strange messages from him. I just thought he was being silly, I did not know it was a cry for help.”

After Martin was found and hospitalized, the devastated Dannie launched a funding campaign so that she could bring him to London for treatment through an air ambulance which costs $13,657 (£10,000) along with other medical bills. During the campaign, Dannie said, “I am the only child of Martin, who raised me single-handedly from infancy."

"He is currently in the ICU unit of a hospital in Cambodia. He is 72 years old. He has severe bronchopneumonia and severe malnutrition. He cannot eat anything solid due to cancer he had eight years ago." She also revealed that he had been in the hospital since December 22, 2020. "He cannot speak the language of Cambodia and only a few doctors there speak basic English,” as per The Sun.

The funding received more than $2,732 (£2,000) after which Dannie shared the tragic news that her father had passed away in the ICU of the Cambodia hospital. “I received the news yesterday that Martin has now died. Thank you so much for your support over the last three weeks. The money raised will now go towards funeral costs and repatriation of his ashes."

The grieving daughter also revealed that requests for reimbursement would be taken care of before Dannie removed the page.