Brush Prairie man paralyzed, apparently by falling hay bale

Juan Rubio’s family has been scrambling to secure its finances since a hay bale apparently fell on him Sunday in Brush Prairie, leaving him paralyzed.

Apparently, because no one is entirely sure what happened.

“He doesn’t remember much, and they said that’s probably because of the concussion,” said Lindsey Rubio, Juan’s wife.

Lindsey said Juan started work at the Lagler dairy farm that day at 2 a.m. No one was around when he was hurt, and he called 911 at around 4:30 Sunday morning.

Lindsey said he was moving hay bales around, and it appeared one on top of a stack fell and hit him. Some of the bales weigh around 1,300 pounds, she said.

Juan Rubio, 31, broke five vertebrae in his lower back and severed his spinal cord. He’ll never walk again.

Lindsey Rubio has a part-time job. Her boss said she’ll be able to return when she’s able, but Juan is the main breadwinner for the couple and their two daughters.

“It’s just, when? When are you ready?” she said, adding that it’s unclear how they’ll pay for medical expenses.

Lindsey said the health insurance Juan has through his job might pay for some lesser, ongoing expenses for a while. But since it’s a work injury, the insurer will likely leave the bulk of the bill to workers’ compensation.

Workers’ comp will handle the Rubios’ bills to a point, but that money has a cap, she said.

Hospital staff have told them to try getting health care coverage through the state Health Care Authority.

Lindsey said she checked on that, but while Juan has lived in the United States since he emigrated from Mexico as a small child, he only became a permanent resident in May. The state’s Apple Health plan requires applicants be residents for five years.

She applied for a pretty selective insurance program through the Department of Social and Health Services, and for disability relief through Social Security, but that won’t kick in for six months.

A family member set up an online fundraiser through GoFundMe.com under the name “Help Juan adjust to a wheelchair.”

The family lives in Vancouver, and Juan has several brothers and sisters nearby. Beyond the money, one of the first things they’ll need to do is find an accessible home to replace their two-story townhouse, Lindsey said.

“And then I guess we’ll deal with the mass amounts of bills that will be pouring in, and the cost of wheelchairs and everything else.”

Juan has been awake and conscious, she said. To help lift Juan’s spirits, she has been showing him videos of a friend’s friend, who suffered a similar injury recently, and how they get around the house and drive a modified car.

It’s likely he’ll be at PeaceHealth Southwest Medical Center for another week or so, with another three to eight weeks of rehab to follow, Lindsey said.

“They said ‘Be prepared. He’ll have bad days,’ ” she said. “But he needs support. He needs people, he needs everyone to pull together.”

Lindsey said their 10-year-old daughter understands what’s happening, but it’s hard.

“Whenever she comes up here she’s a mess,” Lindsey said. “When she comes up here, she’s crying.”

It’s harder for their 4-year-old, who doesn’t understand why she can’t climb into bed with Dad.

“She doesn’t know how to comprehend any of it.”