A devastated wife had to make the heartbreaking decision to fly home and leave her husband’s body in Bali after he died suddenly from an aneurysm.
Nick Noble, 54, fell unconscious and died while riding a scooter on a dream surfing holiday on the Indonesian island with his Brazilian-born wife Simone Chedid, 52, on June 24.
The Sydney couple, who had been together for seven years, had travelled to Bali on June 13, along with some friends of Mr Noble and Ms Chedid’s son Marcos and daughter-in-law Wendy.
But Mr Noble, who appeared to be in good health, suffered a medical episode while riding a scooter back to his hotel after surfing and was found dead on the road.
“They did a post-mortem and (the doctors) told me she had an aneurysm and because of that she passed away,” grieving Chedid told Daily Mail Australia.
The group had planned to spend a month in Bali, but a distraught Ms Chedid is now back in Sydney.
Unable to get a definitive answer from the couple’s travel insurer and unable to afford the cost of repatriating her husband’s body home herself, she is trying to come up with the $13,000 she believes it will cost.
‘His body looked perfectly fine. I think his ankle was a little swollen. ‘There were no signs of serious injuries, just some scratches on the leg,’ he said.
Simone Chedid (front) posed for a selfie at the airport with her husband Nick Noble, back left, son Marcos and daughter-in-law Wendy. But the trip ended in tragedy
Ms Chedid (right), from Sydney, was left in a terrible situation after Mr Noble (left) died suddenly in Bali – she cannot afford to have his body repatriated and an insurance company won’t say whether it will cover the cost.
“There were no marks on his body. When the paramedics contacted me, they said he had probably suffered a heart attack or a stroke because he had no injuries on his body.”
She was deeply shocked.Because I thought my husband was very strong.
Ms Chedid said there was no explanation other than Mr Noble having suffered a medical episode.
‘I was driving very slowly and I wasn’t drunk. Nothing. Unfortunately I had this (aneurysm).’
Although the couple had taken out premium insurance before travelling, Ms Chedid said: “Unfortunately, I have not received anything from the insurance so far.”
Her close friend Brigitte Mentzing, also Brazilian, said: “She has not received a yes or a no from the insurance company.”
‘She has signed documents stating that she will pay for the repatriation of the body, all the expenses, because up to now she has not had any help from the insurance.’
Ms. Mentzing said she remains hopeful that this “can change,” but that “they don’t know yet if insurance will pay for it.”
In the meantime, he has created a GoFundMe page to help her dear friend, who is unable to work due to the situation, with expenses, including funeral planning.
“Insurance is provided for motorcycles, for surfing, for extreme sports, not for aneurysms,” said Chedid.
“So I don’t know what the insurance company will do with this, because the body is still there (in Bali).”
Nick Noble, 54, suffered an aneurysm while riding a motorbike during a surfing holiday in Bali with his Brazilian wife Simone Chedid, 52, on June 24. The couple are pictured here.
Nick Noble, who died in Bali last month, is pictured with his wife Simone Chedid
He received a call from a public official in Canberra about his situation, but the Australian government has not offered to help repatriate Mr Noble’s body.
Ms Chedid said her husband’s sons Charlie, 21, and daughter Grace, 17, “have the support of their mother but of course they are in a lot of pain”.
With the pain still present and the situation regarding her husband’s body without an immediate solution, she moves from the past to the present when she talks about Mr. Noble.
“Nicholas was a wonderful, fantastic father. These boys have a very close relationship,” she said.
“We are so grateful to have Nicholas as a lovely husband and father as well.”
She found solace in the close-knit Brazilian expatriate community, particularly her brother who also lives in Sydney, and in Ms Mentzing, who organised the fundraiser.
“I try, day after day,” he said.
‘Day after day I have to shake myself (when I realize I’m) without the love of my life. He was my friend. He was my love. He was everything to me.’
With the expected cost of repatriation, funeral costs and daily living expenses, the bills are piling up as Ms Chedid tries to cope with her grief.
Nick Noble and Simone Chedid are pictured on vacation in Bali in June 2024
“I don’t have money in my account for that,” he said.
Ms Mentzing added: “We as Brazilians have to become a family because we don’t have our family here.
‘And even though (Simone and Nick) did everything right, they had travel insurance, but so far there is no yes or no and the expenses keep coming.
‘So that was the idea of the GoFundMedo everything we can for Simone’s life to make her feel less stressed, because we can’t bring Nick back.’