BOSTON (WHDH) - A woman who was struck by lightning while walking her dog in Dorchester last month has been released from Boston Medical Center.
Thalita Teixeira Padilla was struck on Sept. 9 on Savin Hill Beach. Forty days later, the BMC team cheered Wednesday as Padilla left their facility and headed to Spaulding Rehabilitation Hospital to continue her recovery.
“That fact that she is alive is wonderful and we all, I think, are surprised,” said Dr. Tracey Dechert, the chief of trauma and acute care surgery at Boston Medical Center. “Honestly, from those early days, we weren’t necessarily thinking I would be here one day talking to you all about her going to rehab. So, we are thrilled.”
Dechert said Padilla came in as sick as a patient can be. Dechert said Padilla then remained in critical condition for about two weeks. Now, Padilla is expected to make a full recovery.
Padilla’s recovery is largely credited to an off-duty nurse who performed CPR immediately after the lightning strike.
“Without those nurses, we probably wouldn’t be having this conversation,” said Padilla’s brother, Andre Teixeira, this week.
Padilla’s family said her road to the point where she could leave BMC has been full of ups and downs.
“It was very traumatic. We didn’t get a break,” Teixeira said. “Everyday was like ‘Her brain isn’t working. Her eyes weren’t working — her kidneys.'”
“Everyday, even though she was overcoming the odds, it was kind of like no breaks,” he continued.
Teixeira said his sister spoke to him on Tuesday for the first time since the lightning strike, adding that she is starting to be herself again.
“She’s a legend,” Teixeira said. “She’s a hero. Everyone loves her.”
Padilla was working in Boston as a travel ICU nurse when she was injured. She is now thinking of getting her masters degree while she recovers.
“To see that something, an experience like this, will be used in a way that takes something positive from this, that’s just lovely,” Dechert said.
Massachusetts State Police initially asked for the public’s help in finding Padilla’s dog, Bruce, who ran off after the lightning strike on Sept. 9.
A man named Hiep Ngo soon came across Bruce. Weeks later, the pet and owner were reunited at the hospital.
Ngo spoke to 7NEWS earlier this month, describing how he found Bruce and connected with Padilla’s husband. When told about the recent reunion between Bruce and Padilla, he said he was overjoyed.
“I’m happy for the family,” Ngo said. “I wish for her to have a speedy recovery and hopefully, I can meet her and shake her hand when she gets out.”
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