A Northern Irish woman who survived a 6,500 ft fall during a skydiving accident has told the story of her remarkable survival in a new book.
Joanne McConville hit the ground at 100mph in an accident 27 years ago, leaving her with horrific injuries.
McConville has released her gripping new book "Piece of Sky" to mark the 27th anniversary of the accident, which occurred on April 1, 1995.
The Antrim author and public speaker was attempting her 65th skydive at the time with her then-boyfriend and instructor Joe.
She told the Belfast Telegraph that her reserve and main parachute came out at the same time, causing them to become entangled and leaving her with "nothing" above her head.
She said the accident was the "most horrendous" thing that ever happened to her, adding that she didn't know if she would live or die.
She said her boyfriend tried in vain to save her before she hit the ground.
"The two of us met in freefall and I was going too low and he was trying to save me, his parachute came out but both my main and reserve came out meaning that they both became entangled and I was left with nothing above my head. I was left spiraling to the ground at 100mph and ended up with horrific injuries," she told the Belfast Telegraph.
McConville lost several teeth in the fall and broke several bones in her face, legs, arms, and pelvis.
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It took her a year and a half to recover from the injuries, but she was eventually able to return to work as an NHS nurse. She married Joe two years after the accident.
She said she was only able to discuss the trauma of the fall 25 years after the accident and said she wrote the book to detail what she learned from a near-death experience and how she picked herself up. However, she stressed that the book was "not a self-help book".
"My main reason for writing it is to help people in a similar situation to know that there is hope and you can come through this and you can carry on with life."
She said her husband only stopped skydiving 10 years ago despite witnessing "the trauma" of her plummeting to the ground.
"This was truly a one in a million accident, and Joe only stopped skydiving 10 years ago," she said.
"Skydiving was like freedom. They were the most exciting three years of my life, and I’m so glad I can live to tell the tale."
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