'I just couldn’t shake it': Mayor prepares for open heart surgery
“I have spoken to Nobby today and he remains positive and is really chomping at the bit to get it over with and back on the road to recovery."
On Wednesday Invercargill Mayor Nobby Clark had some discomfort in his upper back.
He thought he might have landed a bout of Covid but tests came up negative.
Clark says he couldn’t shake the discomfort.
He made the important decision to head to Southland Hospital; a decision which has proved to be somewhat vital given what has since been discovered.
Initial blood tests showed Clark had had a “minor or small” heart attack.
Hospital staff then sent Clark to Dunedin where further tests showed he required surgery.
Clark remains in Dunedin as he awaits quadruple bypass surgery on Wednesday.
He paid credit to the medical staff for picking what they had and admitted the need for open-heart surgery had come as a shock.
“I keep reasonably fit, so the warning for most people is don’t assume anything. These can come and bite you regardless of how fit you are.”
Clark has kept active throughout his life playing multiple sports and has the distinction of being the first person to run the Kepler Track 30 times.
In later years he has been a regular on his bike.
The prospect of open-heart surgery is something he has had to get his head around.
“It will take me two to three months to get over, so it’s quite a serious operation in the overall scheme of things. I’m not looking forward to that.”
“I have had some operations for cancer in the past and always been a bit blasé, but this one is a little more serious. But you’ve got to be positive about things and it’s no good worrying about things you can’t control.”
Clark thanked those who had offered their support.
“I’ve had literally hundreds of emails and texts. I write back to every one of them, as long as they are not rude to me. So I just hope that everyone that has thought of me have a good New Year and I’m quite sure I’ll bounce back.”
Deputy Mayor Tom Campbell will take the mayoral reins at the council until such time as Clark is ready and able to return.
“As we move into the New Year, I look forward to making sure there is no loss of momentum on the projects Nobby has been driving,” Campbell said.
All the best to Nobby for a healthy recovery. And great work from The Tribune on such full multimedia coverage.
Good luck nobby.i had a 5 way bypass in 2011 ,these guys are geniuses. You will soon be back in full swing.