A dancer had both her legs amputated after a tour boat exploded off the coast of the Bahamas.
American Stefanie Schaffer, 22, was vacationing in the Bahamas with her family when their tour boat burst into flames on Saturday at 9 a.m., Fox News reported. The boat had 12 passengers, including two from the Bahamas and 10 Americans.
The girl’s mother sustained broken bones and internal injuries while her stepfather and sister sustained cuts and bruises. Another tourist was killed and others were injured, Fox reported.
Tour company Four C’s Adventures refused to comment on the tragedy when asked by the Daily Mail, because authorities are investigating. Four C’s tours the Exuma Cays with a staff that are local to the area. It provide fishing and other water activities to tourists, according to its website.
Schaffer’s brother George told ABC News that his sister is in a medically induced coma and in critical condition at a hospital in Nassau, Bahamas.
“The scary thing is Stefanie doesn’t know that she’s lost her legs, and that’s what really upsets me,” an unnamed family member told the Daily Mail. “She’s going to wake up from this coma and realize ‘I don’t have any legs.’ It’s breaking my heart.”
George and other family members are traveling from Rutland, Vermont, to support Schaffer and her mother Stacey, who remain hospitalized, ABC reported.
The family set up a GoFundMe page to raise $50,000 for medical and travel expenses. The page currently has raised almost $33,000 in the 20 hours since it was set up.
“The next challenge is to get Stefanie and Stacey to the U.S. for more medical care. Stefanie has not only suffered the loss of her lower legs, but needs surgery on her spine for an L1 lumbar disk fracture. Please keep the love and prayers for Stefanie.” Wrote the Schaffer family, after expressing thanks. “Stacey will also need surgery for her two fractured legs.”
Video footage taken from a nearby boat, obtained by ABC, shows large black plumes of smoke billowing upward as people struggle to get away. The boat looks completely incinerated afterward.