Woman suffers extreme burns to half of body after running into fire to save dogs
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A brave woman who ran back into a devastating home blaze suffered horrific burns to half of her body all to save her beloved pooches. Vanessa Hayes was given just a 10% chance of survival when she sprinted back into a burning two-bedroom property in Haverigg, Cumbria, to try and save her dogs Bella, Lulu, and Pippa. Despite thick billowing smoke coming from the property, that didn't put the 53-year-old from heading back into danger. Vanessa managed to get two of her pooches out - Pippa the pug and French bulldog Lulu. Both survived, but sadly Bella the Bichon Fris died in the fire.
Vanessa suffered 50% full-thickness burns on every part of her body except the palms of her hands and also suffered severe internal injuries to her vital organs due to smoke inhalation. Despite the overwhelming odds against her survival, Vanessa has fought tirelessly to rebuild her life, finding solace and purpose through horses.
Now she is dreaming of representing Great Britain in the Para Dressage and wants to create a sanctuary for trauma survivors. Speaking about her ordeal, she explained: "Everyday for months after the fire I wanted to die. There was a point at the critical stages where my family wondered if I would even want to survive given the pain.".
Vanessa's home went up in flames in the early hours of August 11, 2019, at around 4am. The dog mum was woken up by her pug, Pippa, barking frantically. "The smoke was scalding, like steam from a kettle," she said. "I was being physically restrained by people outside not to go in, but I got free of their grip and ran back in. My injuries were already bad, but the wouldn't have been anywhere near as bad had I not gone back in.".
