A Florida teenager is fighting for her life after suffering burns on more than 95% of her body after a gas can exploded while she was roasting marshmallows with friends.
Layne Chesney was hanging out with her friends on New Year’s Eve, roasting marshmallows over a small fire outside her best friend’s house. A nearby gas can exploded, engulfing her in flames. The 14-year-old girl’s mother credits her friend’s father with saving Layne’s life.
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“The parents ran outside and the father grabbed hold of Layne and tried to use his own body to put out the flames,” Layne’s mother, Leigh Chesney, told PEOPLE. “He also suffered some severe burns as well on his chest and stomach area. But he did save her life. If it wasn’t for him she would not have made it.”
Chesney, who lives in Fort Pierce, said she rushed to be with her daughter, who was rushed to Kendall Regional Medical Center in Miami. She has already undergone surgery to replace her damaged skin.
Her doctors thought she wouldn’t make it, but she survived the first “crucial” 48 hours, Chesney said.
“Layne’s a fighter and she’s defied all the odds so far. She’s really a tough girl,” Chesney told PEOPLE. “I have to fight as hard as she is, no matter if I wanna break down. I know I can’t do that. She needs me to stay strong for her. I just want her to survive.”
Chesney’s family launched a GoFundMe page, which has raised over $25,000 in three days.
Layne’s favorite singer, Billie Eilish, heard of Layne’s story and sent her a video to one of her friends through Instagram.
“Layne, I love you with every single bone in my body,” Eilish told Layne, reports Treasure Coast Palm.com. “And I just wanted you to know that you’re in my head, you’re in my heart and you’re in my whole family’s heart.”
Photo credit: GoFundMe
