A Georgia woman is facing millions of dollars in medical bills after she was disfigured in a random acid attack.
Ashley Wasielewski, 46, was walking outside of Forsyth Park in Savannah on December 10 when an unknown man ran up and poured the corrosive liquid on her.
She immediately ran across the street screaming in agony until help was called.
Wasielewski was treated on the scene and rushed to Memorial Hospital before being moved to a burn center in Augusta, according to the Savannah Police Department.
Photos of Wasielewski in the aftermath of the horrific incident showed her hair melted off, her face severely burned and her arm bandaged.
Wasielewski’s best friend, Connor Milam, told WSBTV that she was on the phone with her mom when she noticed someone was following her.
‘She turned around to think she was going to have to push them, they poured water on her,’ Milam said.
Milam explained that Wasielewski suffered burns to over 50 percent of her body, and that the medical bills for her recovery could pile up into millions of dollars
‘When you look at your best friend you’ve known for 25 years, and that person’s not there right now – she’s so hurt and broken,’ Milam said.
‘It’s just a flood of emotions constantly trying to keep her in the best spirits we can. She’s a strong person.’
A GoFundMe for Wasielewski, created by her friend Kristen Oddi, said the attack caused her ‘unimaginable pain’.
According to a December 24 update from Oddi, Wasielewski recently had surgery to graft her burns.
‘The scalp – where the initial contact occurred – remains the most severe of the affected areas,’ Oddi wrote.
Law enforcement is still searching for the acid attack’s perpetrator, whose identity is unknown.
Police previously released a photo of a man in connection with the case, but have since stated they made contact with the man and that he is not a suspect.
The FBI is offering a reward of up to $5,000 for information leading to the arrest of the suspect and is seeking doorbell or security camera footage from residences near the park.
Savannah Police told the Daily Mail on Friday that there are no significant updates in the case and the investigation is ongoing.
Wasielewski’s son, Westley Wasielewski, told WJCL 22 News his mother first thought water had been thrown on her.
‘I think shortly after she realized that any liquid was even on her, parts of her coat, her leggings were beginning to disintegrate. Then I think the burning set in shortly after that,’ he said.
He said his mother is doing the best she can, but the family knows she has a long road to recovery.
‘She’s hanging in there. It’s a combination of mental and physical, and it really ebbs and flows. She has good moments and bad moments,’ he said.
‘We’ve got a long road ahead of us, but there’s not many people that take care of themselves as well as she does.
‘We’re slowly starting to see that lifelong care is really kind of helping out in this situation with her healing and obviously with her spirit as well.’
