Incredible Pictures Show White Island Survivor Walking For First Time

A White Island survivor who suffered burns to 80 per cent of his body in the explosion on his 19th birthday has shared never-seen-before pictures from his recovery.
Jake Milbank was working as a tour trung quốc guide when the volcano erupted off the coast of Whakatane on [/news/new_zealand/index.html New Zealand]'s North Island on December 9 - claiming the lives of 22 people. 
He spent four months in hospital after the devastating blast and made 25 trips to the operating room during his stay. 
The 20-year-old marked the one-year anniversary of his recovery on [/news/christmas/index.html Christmas] Day by sharing a photo of the moment he took his first steps from his hospital bed. 
Jake Milbank (pictured) was leading a group of tourists when the volcano erupted off the coast of Whakatane in New Zealand on December 9, 2019
He marked the one-year anniversary of his recovery on Christmas Day by sharing a photo of the moment he took his first steps from his hospital bed (pictured)
'Bang on one year ago today - only 16 days after the eruption, my physiotherapist walked into my hospital room and told me that for the first time I would be getting out of bed, and I did just that,' he wrote. 
'I was helped out of bed and after a few very small, painful steps, plopped back down.'
The picture showed Mr Milbank head was covered by white bandages, with only his eyes, nostrils, mouth and ears visible. 
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His body was also bandaged, with a plastic covering dressed on top.
'This was probably one of the first times my family realised that I was really going to be okay, the best Christmas present they could ask for after such a stressful month,' he wrote. 
He ended the post on a positive note, writing: 'I've been having an awesome Christmas with friends, family and plenty of food, definitely an improvement on last year!

Hope everyone is doing the same, and I wish you all the best for the new year!'
'This was probably one of the first times my family realised that I was really going to be okay, the best Christmas present they could ask for after such a stressful month' he wrote
The blast claimed the lives of 22 people including Mr Milbank's White Island tour trung quốc Tours colleagues Hayden-Marshall Inman and Tipene Maangi (Milbank is pictured on White Island)
Milbank has been remarkably optimistic throughout the ordeal despite suffering burns to 80 per cent of his body in the deadly blast.
He had been leading a group of tourists around the island off the coast of Whakatane in [/news/new_zealand/index.html New Zealand] when the explosion happened.
He endured two weeks in a coma, four months in hospital and countless hours on the operating table. 
His body has been left scarred from head to toe, leaving him unable to sweat or regulate his temperature.
The anniversary comes as a legal battle over responsibility for the disaster begins, with authorities in New Zealand filing safety violation charges.
The island had been a popular tourist destination before the eruption on December 9.

But many people now question why tourists were allowed to visit, especially after experts monitoring seismic activity raised the volcano's alert level two weeks before the eruption
Mr Milbank (pictured on White Island) is now looking to the future.

He plans to spend the summer diving, hunting, surfing, partying and hopes to get his skipper's licence early next year
The island had been a popular tourist destination before the eruption on December 9. But many people now question why tourists were allowed to visit, kynghidongduong.vn especially after experts monitoring seismic activity raised the volcano's alert level two weeks before the eruption.
The names of the 10 organisations and three individuals charged are being kept secret for now by authorities under New Zealand's legal rules.
But two agencies which rely on public funding - GNS Science and the National Emergency Management Agency - have disclosed they are among those charged.
Some of the others charged are likely to include private companies which took tourists to the island.

The individuals charged were either company directors or managers.