When we spoke with Emma Carey, she was sitting in front of a killer view while on the Great Ocean Road in Victoria. She had likely been for a stroll right before our chat because she\u2019s an adventurous soul who loves to explore. <\/p>\n\n
Five years ago, however, Emma wasn\u2019t able to go for a quick stroll to take in a view. She couldn\u2019t even stand. Because at 20, Emma \u2013 who is now affectionately known as the girl who fell from the sky \u2013 was in a skydiving accident that left her a paraplegic. <\/p>\n\n
\u201cIt was very nearly five years ago now. I was backpacking around Europe – it was going to be about a three-month trip, I wasn\u2019t sure – and it was the fifth day, when we got to Switzerland and we were going skydiving,\u201d Em told Smooth. <\/em><\/p>\n
\u201cI was really excited for it, always wanted to do it. So, not nervous at all. I was with my best friend Gemma and we went up in the helicopter, we jumped out and I just remember it was the most epic feeling, I absolutely loved it\u2026\u201d <\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
While the rush of free-falling from a helicopter over the Alps was a thrill to begin with, when Em realised she and her instructor weren\u2019t slowing down, that \u201cepic feeling\u201d <\/em>quickly turned to dread.<\/p>\n
She explained:<\/p>\n
\u201cI didn\u2019t really realise that it was going wrong at first because I\u2019d never done one [skydived] before. I didn\u2019t know what to expect, didn\u2019t know how it was meant to feel. But then the closer we got to the ground, I noticed very quickly that something was wrong\u2026<\/em><\/p>\n
\u201cWe were getting closer, he [the tandem skydive instructor] wasn\u2019t responding to me and we were just going straight down.”<\/em><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n
What had happened was that the emergency parachute had become tangled with Em\u2019s regular chute and they had strangled the skydiving instructor, causing him to pass out. <\/p>\n
The pair plummeted to the ground, eventually landing \u2013 Em on her stomach and the instructor, on Em’s back. They were found by Em\u2019s friend Gemma, who called for help right away. <\/p>\n
What followed was two operations in three days, and a month in a Swiss hospital, with Em too sick to do anything more than lie back and heal. <\/p>\n\n