Photo: Stephanie Browitt/Instagram
An Australian woman who survived the White Islandvolcano eruptiontwo years ago is reflecting on the day that changed her life.
On Thursday, 25-year-old Stephanie Browittopened up about the tragedyoff the coast of New Zealand’s North Island, which killed 21 people including her sister and father. Browitt suffered third-degree burns on 70 percent of her body and lost parts of her fingers.
“Today marks 2 years since the incident my family & I were a part of. The day that ripped us apart,” she wrote on Instagram. “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 tragedy’s on this very date.”
She continued, “Everyday I question why we couldn’t have gone through this extremely hard journey together, why they couldn’t be here also. So when I think about today, it’s filled with very mixed emotions. I’m extremely grateful that I was able to make it back home to my mum, but I’m also heartbroken that only I made it back. We are a family of four, not two. My heart hurts when I remember what I felt that day, but it hurts more not knowing what my dad and sister felt, that I wasn’t next to them during their last moments.”
While Thursday marked “2 years of accomplishments,” Browitt said the day also symbolized “loss, pain & never ending grief.”
“I miss and yearn for my family everyday. I love you so much dad and Krystal, so much it kills me. 💖. May the others who lost their lives that day find peace & always be remembered. May those that survived continue to achieve their goals in life.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
Since the tragedy, authorities have confirmed that 47 people — comprised of travelers from the United States, Australia, China, Germany, Malaysia, New Zealand, and the United Kingdom — were on White Island when the volcano erupted just after 2 p.m. on that December afternoon.
Of those, 38 were traveling on Royal Caribbean’s cruise ship Ovation of the Seas, theNew Zealand Heraldreported. Browitt and her family were part of the cruise ship excursion.
In total, 22 people died as a result of the eruption.
She previously spoke withAustralia’s ABC Newsabout the moments during and after the explosion, saying that it felt like she was caught up in a “wave” of ash and molten rock.
“I was just knocked over. I was tumbling, rolling, for minutes. I mean it felt like forever until it stopped and then it was just burning hot,” she said. “I remember trying to stand up and it took so much energy just to stand up…My legs just felt like jelly.”
It was over an hour before Browitt and her group were tended to in the aftermath of the eruption, the news outlet reports.
“Everyone was just on the ground. There was one person lying flat on their belly just spread out, who was screaming in pain, another person who was yelling for help,” she said. “I remember thinking: ‘I don’t know why people are yelling, like, there’s just no one near, around us, we’re on an island in the middle of the ocean.’ "
In November 2020, New Zealand’s government charged 13 parties, who all remained unnamed, for failing to follow health and safety rules when bringing tourists to the White Island,NPR reports. The proceedings are ongoing.
source: people.com
