Strictly star AJ Pritchard fears girlfriend Abbie Quinnen will be scarred for life after horror fireball injury
STRICTLY star AJ Pritchard says his girlfriend Abbie Quinnen could be scarred for life after an online video stunt went horribly wrong.
The Sun told how dancer Abbie was left with third-degree burns and required numerous skin grafts after she was engulfed by flames.
And AJ says that while doctors have deemed her three operations a success, they are expecting permanent damage.
In an exclusive interview, AJ told The Sun: “There are different areas, and there are different degrees of burn and she will have a small scar in certain areas.
“But, as with time, they will heal and other areas will heal. I think the most important thing was that the skin grafts worked.
"The surgeon that did it was very happy with the way that went and seeing the improvement from week to week.
“It is quite a bit overwhelming how strong the skin, the largest organ of the body, actually heals and works so incredibly.
“Obviously, our minds are one thing, but our bodies can do incredible things for us.
"There is gonna be small marks there but right now we're just like everything's going really, really well and that's what we can always focus on.”
AJ and stunning blonde dancer Abbie, 23, were filming a “life hack” video for their one million Instagram followers showing how to cut a glass bottle in half to be used as a vase.
The risky trick involves dipping a rope in a flammable chemical, wrapping it around the bottle and lighting a flame to it.
The couple’s attempt sparked a fireball which engulfed Abbie who was leaning over a worktop. The bottle blew up and her hair and clothing caught alight.
The incident, which took place in their West London flat on January 19, left doctors fighting to save her face and arms from severe scarring.
She has since made 20 hospital visits, needed three skin grafts and immediately raised fears for her career.
Jungle star AJ, 26, added: “We're both in the entertainment industry and our faces, our looks, are something that we are grateful for and we do use.
“So on that night I just tried to keep her calm and keep her focused on how we were going to help and how the NHS would do everything in their power as quickly as possible.”
AJ says he has been left mentally scarred by the accident, and says he gets flashbacks in his sleep and cannot watch TV shows with fire in them even two months on.
He added: “I think with any accident and this is no different, it's always there, and moving forward it will always be there.
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“And yes, it is very traumatic. I can only speak for myself in this scenario.
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"But definitely, certain nights I do wake up and think about what's happened and especially if I'm watching TV, and the scenario happens on TV, which has a naked flame or something that is more towards that way.
"I will change the channel and definitely if Abbie is in the room, I change the channel very quickly.”
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