THE Barra schoolgirl seriously injured in the Manchester bomb attack is making “small yet steady progress”, her family said.
After nearly a month since being hurt in the tragedy, Laura MacIntyre is now able to eat and drink without a feeding tube but has a long road of recovery ahead, said her parents Michael and Nan MacIntyre.
The 15-year-old, from the small island in the Outer Hebrides, was seriously injured in the terrorist attack at the Ariana Grande concert on Monday May 22.
Laura’s family posted an update about her progress on a community Facebook page.
In the post, titled “Update on Laura”, they wrote: “Michael, Nan and family would like to thank everyone for their continued support for Laura. Laura is making small yet steady progress and every day sees some improvement in her condition. She is now managing to eat and drink which has enabled the removal of the feeding tube.
“She is being cared for exceptionally well by nursing and medical staff at Manchester’s Children’s Hospital.
“Laura has a long road ahead and we are extremely grateful for all the support.”
The post has received more than 840 “likes”, with dozens of people writing comments of support on the page.
Laura had been with her friend Eilidh MacLeod, 14, a fellow pupil at Castlebay Community School, at the concert in Manchester.
Eilidh was one of the 22 people who died in the bombing, with her funeral held on the island on Monday June 5.
A ‘special’ Ariana Grande song was played at the Church of Our Lady, Star of the Sea in Castlebay, with about 1,000 people in attendance.
The title track from the hit Ariana Grande album My Everything was played in the church.
Parish priest Father John Paul MacKinnon spoke of the “gifted” and “beautiful” teenager before saying songs which were special to Eilidh would be played before the ceremony . Mourners stood in silence with heads bowed outside the church and in the town square as My Everything by Grande was played.
At the time, prayers were also said for Laura as she continued to be treated in hospital.
One week following the attack, Laura’s parents said their daughter had made “remarkable progress”, saying the teenager had “sustained horrendous injuries”, but had been taken off a ventilator and is able to talk to them. They said at the time: “She is amazing us every day with her strength and determination.
Meanwhile, an inquest into the perpetrator, suicide bomber Salman Abedi, has been opened and adjourned.
Abedi detonated the device in the main foyer of the venue as people left the concert.
No members of his family were present or represented during the brief five-minute hearing at Manchester Town Hall.
The court heard that the force of the explosion “severely disrupted” the body of the 22-year-old attacker, who died at the scene.
Giving evidence, Detective Chief Inspector David Warren, of Greater Manchester Police, said the body was recovered from the blast scene on May 23 and transferred to a mortuary outside Manchester.
A post-mortem examination was carried out which determined that he died of multiple injuries. He was identified primarily by fingerprints, DNA and dental records. A bank card in his name was also recovered from the scene.
Abedi’s full name was Salman Ramadan Abedi, his date of birth was December 31 1994 and his next of kin was his brother Ismail, the court heard.
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