I was floored by sick acid attackers in Zanzibar…my flesh burned to a crisp but after 70 ops I’m confident in my scars
A BRIT who had 70 operations after sick attackers doused her in acid in Zanzibar says she now feels “confident” in her own scars.
Katie Gee was just 18 and walking with a friend in the city of Stone Town when two men on a motorbike threw acid at her in a horror attack.
The North Londoner, now 29, was volunteering at a school on the African island when she was targeted in August 2013.
The right side of her face, body and ear were “burnt to a crisp” as she had 70 procedures over the next three years to recover.
She was forced to wear a plastic face mask and a full body compression suit for 23 hours-a-day after the horrific attack.
Her right ear was so badly damaged it needed to be removed but she had a new one sculpted from tissue from one of her ribs.
Katie had an “uncomfortable” time with her new appearance in the first few years after the attack but has now found “confidence” with her scars.
The Brit, who has a background in real estate, said: “I remember going out for lunch and bumped into a friend’s sister and she didn’t recognise me.
“Now if someone wants to stares I will just stare back and make them feel very uncomfortable.
“I don’t have any shame anymore. I’m in a good place. I’m confident in my scars.”
Katie was going out for dinner with her friend when tragedy took place.
She said: “I was on the way and two men on a motorbike came past. They stopped for half a second.
“I was about to turn to say ‘what do they want?’ and as I was turning back they threw it.
“I tried to wipe my eyes. I tried to read the number plate.
“It started to burn straight away. I wasn’t sure at first if it was a really hot pot of coffee.
“I had heard of Katie Piper. I put two and two together.”
Katie hurried to a restaurant she had visited to before as she remembered that it had a shower, but was startled to see her face and body in the mirror.
She recalled: “It was a yellow, green colour. I was wearing baggy trousers, trainers and a t-shirt and hoodie.
“The acid was burning through the hoodie and burnt off the trousers.
“My ear got burnt off. They said it had burnt off like a crisp.”
Katie had 35 per cent burns and spent two-and-a-half months in the burns unit at Chelsea and Westminster Hospital.
She initially had lots of blood transfusions and donor skin placed on her body.
“They want all the burnt skin off you,” she explained.
Katie then spent the next three years in and out of hospital undergoing 70 operations, including 12-hour-long skin graft surgeries.
She found the year after the attack the hardest, saying: “The scars contract. That’s when they scars are really red and bumpy.
“I had the face mask to put on for most of the day.
She revealed that surgeons wanted to shave her head and use the skin from her scalp, but she begged to keep her hair as “that was the only part that feels nice.”
Katie added: “It helped me leave the house. It was hard for me – I was on my own for three years.”
After getting her eye lid re-built, the 29-year-old finally had her ear reconstructed in 2015 – using cartilage from her ribs and skin from her scalp.
She said: “I didn’t have an ear for over three years.
“[The reconstruction] It made me feel normal. I was looking more like myself.”
Katie went onto graduate from Nottingham University with a 2:1 in sociology and has spent the last five years in real estate but has recently left her job to figure out a new career path.
It took a while for Katie to find the confidence to date again but she is now in a relationship with Michael, also 29.
She admitted: “It took a while to realise people can still fancy me.
“He is really nice and really sweet. He’ll compliment me all the time – even if I’m looking hideous.”
The culprit – who “smiled” before dousing Katie – has never been caught over the attack in the main city Stone Town.
Katie said: “It is still something I think about every day.
“Every time I look in the mirror I can see it.
“It’s still something that affects me all the time.”
Katie has now started sharing her story on TikTok to help others with body confidence and sharing her tips – such as the best make up for scarred skin.
She said: “I want to be a body positive person who is confident in her scars.”
Katie gave her first TV interview since the horror ordeal in 2018, on ITV’s Loose Women.
What happened to Katie Piper?
BRIT TV presenter and former model Katie Piper was the victim of a brutal acid attack in 2008.
The attack was orchestrated by her ex-boyfriend, Daniel Lynch, and carried out by an accomplice, Stefan Sylvestre.
Piper underwent numerous surgeries to treat her burns, including pioneering skin grafts and procedures to rebuild her face.
The physical and emotional recovery process was long and painful as Piper was fitted with a plastic mask that she had to wear for 23 hours a day for two years.
Both Daniel Lynch and Stefan Sylvestre were arrested and convicted.
Lynch received two life sentences for his role in organising the attack and for raping Piper, while Sylvestre was sentenced to life imprisonment with a minimum of six years.
Despite the horrific attack, Piper has shown immense strength.
She founded the Katie Piper Foundation, which supports burns victims and raises awareness about the challenges they face.