The woman burned in a house fire in Argyle, which her husband and brother-in-law are accused of setting, is making progress on the road to recovery.
The September 7th fire left Sharon Wand with extensive burns over 65 percent of her body. UW Hospital trauma surgeon Dr. Lee Faucher says over half of those burns were third degree; located on her face, both arms and hands, and on her legs, abdomen, and back. She also had lung damage and was on a ventilator for several weeks.
When she was admitted to the UW Health burn center, Faucher says he told the family Wand only had about a 10 percent chance of survival. She has since beaten those odds, having undergone four surgeries to remove burned areas on her body and to apply skin grafts.
Faucher told reporters Friday that Wand is now actively taking part in her own therapy and recovery. While she no longer requires a ventilator, Wand does still use a feeding tube.
Wand was pregnant at the time of the fire, but lost the baby at the hospital. She also lost three children to the blaze, but was able to save her two-year-old daughter. Faucher says she was only recently told about the events that put her into the hospital, since she was heavily medicated for weeks because of her severe injuries.
On Thursday of this week, she saw her daughter for the first time since the night of the fire. Faucher says the young girl will likely be a “great motivation for her to continue to get better, because she still has that daughter that needs her.”
Wand’s husband, 32-year-old Armin Wand III, and brother-in-law, 18-year-old Jeremy Wand, remain jailed and face charges of murder, attempted murder, and arson. The two are accused of setting the fire to collect life insurance money.
AUDIO: Andrew Beckett reports (1:11)
