By Isabella Nikolic For Mailonline

Published: 12:46 BST, 17 March 2022 | Updated: 16:05 BST, 17 March 2022

Heart-stopping footage has revealed the moment a Boston pre-school teacher smashed into jagged rocks during a 40ft cliff dive which 'split' her foot in half and broke her back. 

Jamie Brotsky, 29, joined fellow backpackers to jump from high rocks into the sea in the Liguria region of Italy.  

But she didn't leap out far enough and instead repeatedly smashed into the rock face before plummeting into the water. 

Ms Brotsky shattered both of her heels and fractured a vertebra in her spine. Doctors spent nine hours battling to save her left foot which 'split' in half.    

Her family forked out $20,000 to fly her home to Boston, Massachusetts, where her foot turned black due to an infection from the water.

It forced surgeons to perform a partial amputation - cutting away parts of her foot - and rebuild it using muscle and skin from her legs.

Miraculously, despite being warned she might never walk again, she has made a full recovery. And even did another cliff jump in Hawaii recently.   

Jamie Brotsky, 29, joined fellow backpackers to jump from high rocks into the sea in the Liguria region of Italy. Pictured: Ms Brotsky shows the scars on her feet from her accident 

Ms Brotsky shattered both of her heels and fractured a vertebra in her spine. Doctors spent nine hours battling to save her left foot which 'split' in half

Shocking footage shows the moment Ms Brotsky fell down the cliff face and smashed into the rock repeatedly 

Ms Brotsky said: 'I knew the minute I jumped that I'd made a mistake. I remember looking at my foot and it was completely destroyed.

'I didn't know if I'd walk again but I vowed to give it my all and try.

'I felt bless beyond belief to not have been paralysed or dead and this foot is just one reminder of that.'

It forced surgeons to perform a partial amputation - cutting away parts of her foot - and rebuild it using muscle and skin from her legs

Jamie Brotsky is treated for the massive injuries she suffered when a cliff jump went horribly wrong

Ms Brotsky in a wheelchair in hospital after the nine-hour surgery which saved her foot from amputation 

She was two weeks onto travelling around Europe when she went cliff jumping in Riomaggiore, a village on the Cinque Terre, in June 2018.

She said: 'I was on vacation so thought why not try something new. I didn't jump out far enough and knew I was going to hit the rocks.

'It lasted seconds but I felt like I was falling in slow motion. By some miracle I survived.'

She was pulled to safety by onlookers and air lifted to San Martino Hospital, Italy.

Ms Brotsky said: 'I asked if it was bad, and [doctors] said: 'Don't look at your feet.'

'It was completely destroyed - it didn't look like a foot. I left a trail of blood along the road as I was stretchered to the helicopter.'

After 11 days in hospital, Jamie's family flew her home.

Pictured: Ms Brotsky's feet in casts and other medical equipment after a nine-hour surgery saved her foot from amputation 

She started physiotherapy three times a week and stunned doctor with her progress. After a year, she was almost fully recovered and planning her next trip away

She spent the next three months in a wheelchair and wasn't allowed to stand, walk, or even shower

Her foot began 'turning black' and when she landed, doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, feared they would have to perform a full amputation.

In the end, she had a partial amputation of her left foot, and surgeons took muscle from her back and a skin graft from her thigh to try and save the appendage.

She said: 'It was really touch and go. After all the surgery, doctors didn't know if I would walk again, let alone run.

'No one could give me a straight answer - it was a really scary time.'

She spent the next three months in a wheelchair and wasn't allowed to stand, walk, or even shower.

She started physiotherapy three times a week and stunned doctor with her progress. After a year, she was almost fully recovered and planning her next trip away.

Ms Brotsky said: 'I started therapy and I got to work. I wanted to prove the doctors wrong and I'm so proud of myself'

Ms Brotsky said: 'I started therapy and I got to work. I wanted to prove the doctors wrong and I'm so proud of myself.

'After the first weekend I was off crutches and using a walker alone.

'They couldn't believe it when they saw how well I was doing - I was there poster child for recovery.'

After getting better, Jamie went backpacking around Hawaii in April 2021 and even completed another cliff dive.

The accident hasn't held her back and she is planning to sell all her things and go travelling again.

'I did another cliff jump - successfully this time,' Jamie added.

'I burst into tears after because I was so happy I did it.

'It's been about three years since the accident, and I never thought I'd be where I am today.

'I want to show people that it does not matter what the doctors say, you can do absolutely anything you want with a positive attitude and the drive to better yourself and your future.

'I feel like I got a second chance at life and I'm not going waste it.'

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