30th May 2005 The woman who almost lost her right arm late last year when the rope being used to rescue a floundering longboat snapped has in a New Zealand hospital successfully had a nerve graft and some tendons reconstructed. "This is an answer to prayer" says Darrlyn's mother Carol.
Darralyn Griffiths who had waited months for this operation is feeling relieved its all over.
Following the accident last year she was evacuated from the Island the same day on a boat which took two days to arrive at Mangareva in French Polynesia. From there she was flown to a hospital in Tahiti where she spent three weeks before flying on to New Zealand Accompanying her was her husband Turi. Her father and Mayor Jay Warren also accompanied her to as far as Tahiti.
Darralyn and Turi Griffiths
Meanwhile, the longboat which had floundered in the rocks is now on its way back to Pitcairn. Longboat O'Leary known locally as "Tub" had spent several months in New Zealand undergoing repairs which included installing a larger and more powerful engine.