Rescued Albion Teen at Home
By: LaTonya Stephens
Updated: January 12, 2008
An Albion, Illinois teen is finally back at home after her dramatic vacation at sea.
14-year old Laura Montero was sailing on the Dawn Princess in December when her appendix burst.
She needed surgery immediately but the closest hospital was 500 miles away on the naval ship USS Ronald Reagan.
They rescued the teen by helicopter eight hours after getting the call.
Montero says it was scary at first but once she got on the helicopter....she says it was fun.
The teen had emergency surgery on the ship but says media attention since December 18th has been overwhelming.
Her mother, Trudy LaField says her focus all along was to get her daughters health back on track.
She says they spent weeks in Rady Childrens Hospital in San Diego treating a number of infections.
The family finally made it home Friday night and are grateful for the help along the way.
The 14-year old says shes just glad to be home....hanging with friends.
Mother Trudy says Laura is expected to be back at Albion grade school as soon as Monday.
