Although these kinds of fires are frequent in Australia this time of year, the organizers neglected to take safety precautions beforehand, and numerous athletes, including Turia, were engulfed in flames.
Turia was one of the contestants in the Miss Australia competition and had a career as a model before the catastrophe. She worked as a mining engineer in a diamond mine.
She dated Michael, a high school classmate.
The girl said that she lived up to her wildest expectations. But in a split second, everything was altered. She remembered asking herself why the doctors saved her life during that horrible time in the hospital.
Turia stayed in hospitals for a total of 864 days. More than 200 procedures were performed on her, including one to repair her nearly entirely burned-out nose. Amputating five fingers was necessary.
The injuries gradually recovered. Turia, however, could not force herself to leave the house. She had the impression that her deformed hands and face would draw the notice of others.
