Susan Ardron’s family in the UK thought she was dead, but she had been battling amnesia after a car crash in SA.
According to MailOnline, Ardron emigrated to South Africa in 1975, communication with her family abruptly ended a few years later.
Completely unaware that she was battling against amnesia following a serious car accident, her family presumed she had died.
But now, after 34 years, as her memory slowly started to come back, she has stunned her siblings by contacting them on Facebook.
Still living in SA, the 61-year-old was reportedly given a helping hand to trace her family in Rotherham, South Yorkshire, by a family she stayed with in Joburg.
And now, following the bolt out of the blue, her brother Colin, 39, and sisters Dawn, 58, Julie, 50 and Gail, 52, are desperately trying to obtain a passport for their sister to get her back home.
According to the Daily Mail Susan left for South Africa with her husband Sid and four young children, but when her siblings failed to hear from her, they made desperate attempts to find her through the Red Cross and Salvation Army.
It has since emerged that a car crash had reportedly left her struggling to remember her real identity, and left her even referring to herself as Katie.
Her husband soon left, with their four children, Joanna, 43, Jason, 40, Adele, 38, and Amanda, 36, returning to the UK.
Susan has yet to make full contact with them as she continues to try to come to terms with the gaps in her memory.
She found herself living with a number of different families across SA, battling breast cancer without her family and taking up employment as a maid.
But it wasn’t until she moved in with the January family that she was given the helping hand to get in touch with her long-lost family.
The family, who reach out to those in need after being homeless themselves, have been invaluable in getting her on the social network site.
And speaking to the Daily Mirror, her brother paid tribute to them. “The Januarys have been exceptional. We owe it all to them.”
Her sister Dawn added: “Over the years her memory has started to come back, little by little. She has good and bad days when her memory completely goes and she is back to square one, and other days where she can recall a bit more.
“We thought it might be a trick, but as soon as we were sent photos, we immediately knew it was her.
“It’s a mix of huge relief and sadness. We are just so sad that this didn’t happen three years ago when our mum and dad were still alive.”
Susan’s parents, Colin and Mavis, both died in 2009.
According to the family, they refused to move from the family home in case their daughter ever came looking for them. - IOL