Tigers fan learns to walk again after health emergency at Comerica Park in 2023

Tigers fan recovers after health emergency at Comerica Park

Tigers fan Andrea Abbott is on the move, and just a couple of years ago, she was learning how to walk again.

DETROIT (FOX 2) - A Tigers fan who was at Wednesday's big game is happy to be able to cheer on her team after nearly losing her life outside Comerica Park two years prior.

After being rushed to the hospital, she had to learn to walk and talk again.

The backstory:

Tigers fan Andrea Abbott is on the move after just a couple of years ago, she was learning how to walk again.

"I had to relearn how to eat. I had to learn how to walk. I couldn’t get out of bed by myself. There were just so many things you take for granted every day, and in an instant, that stuff for me was gone," said Abbott.

It all happened at Comerica Park just outside the gate back in the summer of 2023. She felt short of breath, said she didn’t feel good, and collapsed.

"That’s really the last thing I remember, and when I woke up hours later, I was on a ventilator," she said.

However, at DMC, they were able to increase those odds up to 50% survival with what’s called an ECMO—basically an artificial lung to oxygenate her blood.

"That was really a trying time. I didn’t know how sick I was until weeks later," said Rehab Manager Ali Zein. "When they told me it was the equivalent of the Tigers being down in the 9th inning, no one’s on base; they’re down 10-1, and you won the game."

Andrea spent weeks in this gym with the specialists at the Rehabilitation Institute of Michigan. However, many people were there to cheer her on every step of the way.

What's next:

Andrea continues to do one of her favorite things: cheering on her team no matter what.