A survivor of the Whakaari/White Island volcanic eruption has provided a glimpse of her remarkable fight for survival that left her with burns to 70 percent of her body and forced her to wear a face compression bandage for years.
Twenty-two people died from burns and blast injuries after the volcano erupted off the coast of Whakatane on December 9, 2019.
Australian Stephanie Browitt, her younger sister Krystal, 21, and their father Paul had been on the Ovation of the Seas when it docked in Tauranga, and passengers took a tour bus to White Island.
Her sister and father were among the 22 people killed, while Browitt spent two weeks in a coma fighting for her life after suffering third-degree burns to 70 percent of her body. In total, she spent six months in hospital recovering from her injuries.
Speaking to 60 Minutes Australia on Sunday, Browitt completed the next step in her recovery process by removing her compression bandage for the first time in two and half years.
"I know, it's a big deal. It's been a long time, it's felt like forever and as though this day would never come," she said.
"It's emotional, and it's scary. It's actually quite daunting as much as it is exciting."
Browitt said she now sees "a person who has gone through much more than I ever expected in life".
"I am tougher than I ever thought I would be," she said.
"I think I have learnt that the fight for survival is a real thing. I was fighting every day to survive, just to get back to myself. I never knew I had this in me."
Browitt recalled the scary moment the volcano erupted and she was forced to run for her life.
"Only a few seconds later, we heard the front tour guide scream, 'run' and that's when we realised and made the split-second decision to just bolt," Browitt told 60 Minutes Australia.
"It was coming from behind and getting louder and louder as it was coming closer and you could hear all the rocks. You could hear the sound of all the rocks hitting the ground and people just screaming.
"I didn't think I would survive...I thought I was going to die."
Browitt and her family were stuck on the island for hours after the explosion and were eventually airlifted and taken to hospital.
Krystal never made it off the island alive and her body was recovered days later, while her father died from his injuries a month after the blast.
Browitt credits her mother Marie - who stayed on the cruise ship on the day of the explosion - for helping her on the recovery journey.
"Whilst my scars are visible, she has her own that aren't visible, but she has always made sure to put me first," Browitt said.
Browitt shared never-seen-before photos to 60 Minutes Australia which show the horrific injuries the blast caused her.
The photos show how the burns ripped layers of skin off her head, back, arms, torso, and legs, leaving her exposed limbs in need of numerous skin grafts.
Browitt and her mother are currently suing Royal Caribbean - the owner of Ovation of the Seas - over the physical and psychological injuries they suffered.
Browitt posted photos on Instagram on the second anniversary of the volcano eruption where she recounted the day her family was "ripped apart".
"Today marks two years since the incident my family and I were a part of. The day that ripped us apart. For a lot of burn survivors they call it their 'burnversary', a day where they can celebrate their achievements, accomplishments and the fact that they survived such awful tragedies on this very date," Browitt wrote in an Instagram post.
