SAN DIEGO (KGTV) - The vacation nightmare is nearing an end for the San Diego woman injured parasailing in Mexico last month. Wednesday afternoon Katie Malone was wheeled out of UCSD Medical Center with her family by her side.
"It’s refreshing to be out leaving and being in the sun," she said.
The 29-year-old was severely injured during a parasailing accident June 9 during birthday trip to Puerto Vallarta.
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For the first time since her accident, Katie talked about her ordeal.
"I was up there like 'Alright here we go for the ride,' but I knew that I was gonna be safe and just started praying. God looked out for me," she said. "When I was up there flipping around and stuff I was able to hold myself and carry my weight and brace myself."
Witnesses say the device Katie was in disconnected from the boat and she was blown around for 45 minutes in the air before falling hundreds of feet to the ground. She was also willing to talk about the the moments before the fall, but says she doesn't remember much.
"I passed out right before, that’s when I started spinning in circles and I got really sick," she said.
Now that the experience is behind her, and she wants to shift her focus to recovering. Katie tells 10News she's incredibly thankful for the community. Katie did not have medical trip insurance so she was not able to initially pay for her treatment while she was stuck abroad as her condition worsened.
Donations helped pay for her treatment and emergency life flight from Mexico to San Diego last week.
"I just want to say thank you to everybody who supported me and everyone that's been there for me," she said. "It's been helping a lot."
Many people have stepped in to help Katie's family, including former congressman Duncan Hunter, Sr. On June 26 she was flown home on a private plane. A trip that her family had been unable to pay for.
A GoFundMe account was established to help Malone’s family with medical expenses.
