Jenipher Lewis, the beloved actor on the sitcom Black-ish, has recalled a nine-hour surgery performed on her after falling at a luxury hotel, an incident that left her paralysed for 8 months.
Speaking on the popular talk show TMZ Live, Lewis noted that she, and a travel partner, were on vacation on a luxury deck at the Serengeti when she fell 10 feet to the ground.
She noted that it was dark when she walked out on the deck and fell off near an infinity pool, a tragedy that left her paralysed for 8 months.
"It was an unsafe deck that I walked out on. It was pitch black out there. There was no sign, there was no railing. Had there been a sign, I could have seen it," she recalled.
"I walked out there and before I knew it, I was on the ground. I could not move. I was unaware that there were wild animals down there."
While on the ground, she screamed and luckily awakened her travel partner who called for help.
Lewis added that Doctors Without Borders swiftly airlifted her to a hospital in Nairobi where she stated that she received good care.
She further noted that at the time, she could not move but the attendants carried her like a baby and treated her well.
"Doctors Without Borders came and got me. They airlifted me out of the Serengeti. Took me from Tanzania to Kenya. I had a nine-hour surgery. They said I was in ICU for six days and 10 days in the hospital," she added.
"(The people in Nairobi) took such good care of me. I was in Pampers. They picked me up like I was a baby. They had to wash me. I could not move. I could not walk for 8 months after this."
Without revealing the time the incident occurred, Lewis revealed that she had been successfully treated and was back on her feet.
Lewis is known for her role as Ruby Johnson, the mother of Black-ish's main actor Andre Johnson. The critically acclaimed comedy show aired for eight seasons on ABC TV Channel between 2014 and 2022.
