Brave aspiring model Resham Khan ‘prayed to die’ after stranger threw acid at her on school run
This Morning: Acid attack survivor Picture: Rex – GoFundMe An aspiring model Resham Khan has spoken..
Picture: Rex – GoFundMe
An aspiring model Resham Khan has spoken about the moment her life was changed forever when she was covered in acid while on the school run in her first TV interview.
Khan spoke to Holly Willoughby and Phillip Schofield about the terrifying incident in June when they were targeted in the morning as they sat in a car.
She remembers that the corrosive liquid had been sprayed at her and her cousin with a ‘squirty bottle’.
‘I was screaming and said, “Drive!” I thought the man was throwing petrol. He then ran round to my cousin’s side of the car. He [my cousin] put his foot down,’ Khan recounted.
‘The guy ran with the car and continued to throw the acid throughout the car. I saw the dashboard and it was all smoke. But I didn’t realise what had happened until after when I was running around and asking for help.’
When they drove off to get away from their attacker they were involved in a car crash. Shocked onlookers eventually brought them water to rinse the liquid from their bodies.
Khan described how their clothes ‘had melted away’.
‘I was stressing that my contact lenses were going to melt into my eyes. I [later] spoke to a witness during court and he said he looked into my eyes and it was grey,’ she said.
After a 45 minute wait for an ambulance, the pair were eventually taken to hospital by a passerby and they were immediately put under a cold shower.
‘It was unbearable [pain]. I was in the shower, praying to die. I didn’t want to get out of the shower,’ she said.
‘They tried to wash my eyes out and hold my head back. It was painful. I’ve had three skin grafts. My eye doesn’t close anymore. I might get another skin graft on my face. There is a lot on my body. My face is flat although the texture is different. My skin [on my body] is lumpy and purple still.’
It’s been a long road of recovery for the 21-year-old, who said that she’s still suffering from ‘bad days’ as well as the good.
‘I think back to how much support I’ve had from strangers all around the world. How can I let this break me?’ she said.
“I don’t think this is about forgiveness. I will never understand. I never got to face him. I’ve always wondered why. Someone sat me down and said you may never understand why, so don’t dwell on it.’
Presenter Phillip commended the student and aspiring model for telling her story, as he said: ‘You are remarkable and very beautiful.’
Her assailant John Tomlin has pleaded guilty to two counts of causing GBH with intent and will be sentenced in January.
MORE: Man pleads guilty over horrific acid attack on aspiring model
