Alton Towers Smiler crash survivor Leah Washington has returned to the theme park for the first time since the horrific ordeal in 2015.
The brave amputee, 22, lost her leg when the rollercoaster carriage she was travelling on with her boyfriend, Joe Pugh, smashed into a stationary one in front.
Ms Washington has garnered nearly 20,00 Instagram followers by sharing her progress since the shocking incident.
And on Saturday she shared Instagram videos and images of her with friends at the Alton Towers Enchanted Village in what is the first time she has been back to the theme park.
Alton Towers Smiler crash survivor Leah Washington (far left) has returned to the theme park for the first time since the horrific ordeal in 2015
One picture, which she captioned ‘hey babies’, showed her wearing a spa gown alongside friends as they posed outside a ‘treehouse’ log cabin.
Another showed her walking into one of the cabins, while a third showed a large gin and tonic at the theme park’s spa, alongside a caption which read: ‘My excuse for a gin!’
The plush log cabins are set across two floors and boast double bedrooms set across two floors.
The brave amputee, 22, who lost her leg when the rollercoaster carriage she was travelling on with her new boyfriend Joe Pugh smashed into a stationary one in front
Ms Washington has garnered nearly 20,00 Instagram followers by sharing her progress since the shocking incident. Pictured: Ms Washington (second from right) enjoys champagne in a hot tub at Alton Towers on Saturday
It comes after Ms Washington revealed in July her heartbreak at the loss of her great grandmother, just months after she lost her grandfather.
The brave amputee, 22, from South Yorkshire, who has garnered an almost 20,000-strong following on Instagram by sharing her progress since the shocking accident, shared a tribute to mark her loss online.
Posting a touching picture as she planted a kiss on her late relative, Leah wrote: ‘My beautiful and loving great grandma we will miss you forever thank you for everything you ever did for me. You were so generous, kind and gave the best advice. I love and miss you lots’.
The ‘treehouse’ log cabins at Alton Towers Enchanted Village where Ms Washington is staying with friends
The plush log cabins are set across two floors and boast double bedrooms set across two floors
The sad post came just months after Leah lost her grandfather in January.
Sharing a snap at the time, Leah wrote: ‘My loving and caring granddad! I will miss you so much. You can now rest in peace and out of pain. I will always be ‘your little princess’ thank you for being the best granddad’.
Leah’s posts were inundated with messages of support from her followers expressing their condolences.
Leah was on her first proper date with boyfriend Joe Pugh when the Smiler rollercoaster carriage smashed into a stationary train at Alton Towers, in Staffordshire, during June 2015.
On Saturday she shared Instagram videos and images of her with friends at the Alton Towers Enchanted Village in what is the first time she has been back to the theme park
Ms Washington, from Barnsley, was one of two young passengers who lost a leg while Mr Pugh suffered devastating injuries himself including two shattered kneecaps.
In spite of the trauma of the crash, the pair have stayed together and often post pictures of their days out on social media.
Despite having a state-of-the-art £60,000 prosthetic leg which allows her to walk unaided, the teenager still suffers crippling pain and fatigue after standing for long periods.
Another picture showed her walking into a ‘treehouse’ log cabin at the venue
A glass or two: Leah (third from right) was also seen enjoying a glass of champagne with friends
An investigation into the 2015 accident concluded that the crash was due to human error; an engineer had wrongly restarted the ride while a stationary carriage was on the track in front of it.
Alton Towers owner Merlin Attractions were fined £5million for health and safety breaches which were blasted by Judge Michael Chambers QC as a ‘catastrophic failure’.
They were fined an initial £5million, and interim payments have covered Leah and Joe’s medical and physio bills to date – but the pair have also submitted a ‘substantial’ compensation claim.
Leah’s £60,000 prosthetic leg – which contains a microprocessor knee – will need replacing every few years, which will amount to hundreds of thousands of pounds over her lifetime.