Parents' heartbreak as bubbly Canberra three-year-old struggles to walk and speak after in-home fall

Harper Saunders loves purple. The little girl from Tuggeranong, whom her mum describes as a "typical three-year-old", used to shout with joy whenever anyone asked for her favourite colour.

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Today, however, she stammers to say the word "purple" and struggles even to walk.

Life took a cruel turn for Tuggeranong couple Andre and Melissa after their three-year-old daughter Harper suffered a fall while playing at home. Pictures by Keegan Carroll and supplied.

In what would be every parent's worst nightmare, little Harper fell off a loft bed while playing at her Canberra home on the morning of September 17, suffering a severe head injury.

Airlifted to a hospital in Sydney for critical brain surgery, she spent days on life support before coming off the ventilator.

Her recovery is expected to take months.

Her doting parents are heartbroken by the unexpected turn of events, but they remain determined to bring their bubbly little girl back against all odds.

She was airlifted from Canberra Hospital to the Sydney Children's Hospital on September 17, 2026 for emergency surgery. Picture Supplied

"She was crying, but there were no obvious signs of injury," her mother, Melissa Saunders, recalled of the morning of the accident.

Harper, usually the liveliest presence at home among her siblings, became unusually subdued soon after the fall.

"She cuddled with her dad and went to sleep. Later, she started to vomit, and there was blood," said Mrs Saunders, whose mother's instinct kicked in as she immediately called an ambulance.

When paramedics arrived at the family home, they noticed Harper's blood sugar levels were high.

"They suspected it could be a viral infection and checked her ketone levels after my mum raised concerns and lent them a device," Mrs Saunders said.

Harper was taken to Canberra Hospital, where her mother continued to raise concerns with doctors and nurses about the knock to her head, pointing out significant swelling and bruising behind her ear.

The little girl underwent life threating brain surgery and remained in an induced coma and ventilator support as her parents feared the worst. Picture Supplied

"Minutes later, they told us she had to be rushed to Sydney. She was deteriorating," Mrs Saunders recalled, fighting back tears.

As the devastated mother boarded the emergency helicopter alongside her daughter on a stretcher, Harper's anxious father, Andre Saunders, chased after them by car.

Harper was admitted to Sydney Children's Hospital in Randwick and taken straight into surgery.

Described as a bubbly and smart three-year-old, Harper now struggles with her speech and movement. A photograph of her before the accident. Picture Supplied

"September has been really bad for us. In 2021, we lost our twin boys in Canberra after they were born prematurely," said Mr Saunders, a local tradie.

Following surgery, Harper was placed in an induced coma on ventilator support. "We didn't know if she would survive. It was a lot to witness, but thanks to the surgeons, they saved her life," Mrs Saunders said.

After a week in hospital, the little girl was discharged, allowing the family to return home to Canberra.

The financial burden on the family following the incidents of September 17 has been immense as they struggle with Harper's recovery. Picture by Keegan Carroll

However, the family's ordeal is far from over. Harper's road to recovery will be long, and the financial toll is already immense.

"We need to get her a wheelchair and a lower, safer bed. We can't risk another fall," said Mrs Saunders, who has temporarily given up her job to care for her daughter full-time.

Yet it is not the financial burden that has left the Canberra parents in tears, but the sight of their once-vibrant little girl struggling to speak and stand on her own feet.

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