Shattered wife relives the horrific moment her fit husband, 35, dropped dead in front of her from a condition linked to Sudden Adult Death Syndrome – and shares the ONE test that could have saved him

‘My initial thought when she was just lying there without moving was, “Geez, her heart has stopped.”‘

Medics are still investigating the reason of her heart attack, but she now has a defibrillator implanted and is taking heart medication.

She has no recollection of the day of the heart attack.

‘I thought I had just broken my ankle and was about to have ankle surgery; I had no idea it was my heart,’ she told the ABC.

‘There aren’t enough words to express my gratitude to everyone who assisted me.’

With a return to the sporting fields, she expects to resume her normal life.

‘The doctors don’t think it will happen again,’ Jess added.

‘I didn’t want them to witness him laying still on our bedroom floor.’ ‘I didn’t want them to see his final image.’

After Bec urged them to try everything they could to rescue Andrew, paramedics worked for more than 90 minutes to attempt to resuscitate him.

Bec stayed up all night waiting to tell their children their father had died after all hope had faded and the medics had left.

She described Andrew as “amazing.” ‘He was the kind of person you could go to and tell him anything, and he’d back you up 100 percent.’

‘He was usually cheerful.’ He was constantly cracking jokes. He was a fantastic father. He was a really hands-on kind of guy.

He worked full-time, but he’d come home and leave “So, kids, let’s go do something! We’re going for a walk, a ride, and a game of football!”

‘And he was adored by all of his pals.’

The pair met 16 years ago while Bec, now 39, was working in a bank and Andrew, who was travelling overseas for a year, came in for a credit card.

However, the journey was cut short after only a few months so that he could visit Bec before they settled down and began their family.

‘It’s a true love tale,’ says Bec, a clothes designer from Victoria’s Bendigo.

She claims that informing the children that their father had died was the most difficult thing she has ever had to do in her life.

‘At first, they didn’t believe me,’ she admitted. ‘I didn’t know where to begin with this.’

‘I was still coming to terms with him leaving us, so I had to put on my parent hat and keep my s*** together so I could explain it to them.’

‘First, my son awoke, and I told him what had happened, and then my daughter awoke because she heard Taj weeping.’

‘As a parent, you must attempt to protect your children as much as possible while also telling them the truth.’