Woman celebrates 60 years in an iron lung
On 5 April, June Middleton celebrated an anniversary that few of us would envy – her 60th year in an iron lung, a machine that enables her to breathe.
The Guiness World record holder will be marking the occasion from her home at Yooralla’s Ventilator Accommodation Support Service in Thornbury, Victoria.
Ms Middleton first entered her “box” in 1949, at the age of 22, when she was suddenly struck down with polio only months before her wedding was due to take place.
As she tells it, “Not long after I had been put on the respirator I asked the doctor if I could get out soon. He just looked at me, shook his head and said ‘No dear, we’ll have to keep you in there a little while longer.’”
Ms Middleton entered the Guinness World Book of Records in 2006 as the person who has spent the longest amount of time in an iron lung.
She lives at the Ventilator Accommodation Support Service (VASS) in Thornbury, a specialised facility supporting people who need constant ventilator assistance to have their own homes and independence.
The VASS Service was opened in 2007.
Although June’s official anniversary date is 8 April, she is celebrated the occasion on Sunday 3 April with a small party including a plate of her favourite food, crayfish, and is being presented with a Carlton FC jumper, June’s favourite club, signed by the players.
