10 things you should know about the inspiring Sosoliso plane crash survivor

chibumga izuzu

September 14, 2017 12:10 PM

Meet Kechi Okwuchi, the inspiring Nigerian who survived the 2005 Sosoliso plane crash and over 100 surgeries.

12 years after what many would call a life changing event, burn survivor

She recently made it to the America's Got Talent finals after her emotional rendition of “Don’t Worry About Me” by Frances.

Who is Kechi Okwuchi?

Here are 10 things you should know about the inspiring Nigerian who survived the 2005 Sosoliso plane crash and has gone through over 100 surgeries.

1. Born on October 29, 1989, Okwuchi is the first born of a family of four; her father, mother and younger sister.

2. On December 10, 2005, she became one of the two survivors of the Sosoliso Airline Flight 1145 crash that took the lives of 107 passengers.

3. The crash occurred 20 minutes to landing on her way back to Port Harcourt for a Christmas holiday alongside about 61 other students from her school, Loyola Jesuit College.

4. Following the crash, Okwuchi suffered third-degree burns over 65% of her body. She received her first major treatment at Milpark Hospital in Johannesburg, South Africa.

5. Two years later, Okwuchi and her family moved to Houston to continue her medical treatment at Shriners Hospitals for Children in Galveston, Texas, United States.

6. The inspiring Okwuchi has gone through and survived over 100 surgeries since the crash.

7. While she was in coma, her mother sang her a popular Nigerian Christian hymn everyday. She could hear her in her subconscious, and when she woke up, she knew the song, the words, the tune and the melody.

8. In 2015, she graduated from the University of Saint Thomas, in Texas, USA, with a First Class Degree. She also got invited into six honour societies, including the International Economics Honour Society.

9. After graduation, she worked at a non-profit organization in Houston. She had no time for internships as she was always in and out of surgery.

10. On Tuesday, June 6, 2017, Okwuchi received a "yes" from each of the four America's Got Talentjudges with her performance of Ed Sheeran’s “Thinking Out Loud" during her audition.

And on Wednesday, September 13, 2017, after several other amazing performances, she won the final Dunkin Save of the season to make it to the finals.

chibumga izuzu