A dancer is finally walking again after suffering severe burns to 80 percent of her body while performing at a restaurant in Colombia.
The images showed Laura Villamil, 28, miraculously walking alongside doctors as part of her rehabilitation at a medical center in Bogotá.
‘For us this is something encouraging, it is joy, it is life, it is peace,’ said Villamil’s brother, Santiago Villamil. Caracol News.
‘The doctors are amazed by my sister’s progress. “I am also in shock.”
Colombian dancer and actress Laura Villamil recently began walking again as part of her rehabilitation, two months after suffering severe burns while performing in a Bogotá restaurant.
The 28-year-old’s skirt suddenly caught fire, surrounding her in flames as shocked witnesses looked on.
Laura Villamil, who is also an actress, had joined dancers in carrying flaming torches at the crowded Andrés Carnes de Res restaurant in Chía, Cundinamarca, when her skirt caught fire in August.
Flames engulfed the 28-year-old woman, who was seen running through the crowd and toward another part of the restaurant as stunned diners looked on before an employee used a blanket to put out the flames.
Laura Villamil was rushed to a local medical center and then transferred to the Fundación Santa Fé clinic in Bogotá, where she underwent a tracheotomy and was connected to a ventilator.
‘Seeing my sister walk after the percentage of burns she had is a miracle,’ Santiago Villamil told the media.
Laura Villamil has undergone 12 surgeries in the last two months, including one on Wednesday that lasted six hours
Laura Villamil suffered burns on 80 percent of her body after her skirt caught fire while performing at a restaurant near Bogotá, Colombia, in August.
Colombian actress and model Laura Villamil is recovering in a local clinic in Bogotá, where she began to walk again.
Laura Villamil could be seen smiling and chatting with staff as she took three steps with the help of a walker.
“His body did not respond with the strength of his legs,” said Santiago Villamil. ‘She told me she didn’t have enough strength to get up, but now she is focused and determined to recover and leave the clinic.
“He wanted to walk more, he wanted to try harder,” he added. ‘In the video you can see that she wanted to walk through the corridors with the help of a walker and was always supervised by the clinic staff, to whom I am very grateful.’
He revealed that his sister has undergone 12 surgeries in the last two months due to third-degree burns. His most recent surgery was on Wednesday and took six hours to complete.
“More is expected because there are still parts of the body that need to be treated with grafts,” said Santiago Villamil.
