A 15-year-old girl in Guatemala has endured a terrifying ordeal after waking up inside a coffin during her own funeral.
Videos by Wide Open Country
Yuleidy Ixcotoyac was mistakenly believed to have died after losing consciousness while her father, Abraham Ixcotoyac, was driving her to a medical center.
Abraham, an evangelical pastor, stopped the vehicle to check his daughter's pulse and breathing. Unable to detect either, he believed she had died on Saturday morning.
Teen Wakes Up at Funeral, Shocks Grieving Family
Speaking to local media, Abraham said his daughter "had simply ceased to exist, she died on the way."
"I saw that she was no longer breathing and I couldn't feel her pulse on her wrists," he added. "It was a very difficult situation for me. She did not go to hospital."
Because Yuleidy never reached the hospital, medical professionals did not examine her or officially declare her dead. Authorities also never issued a death certificate.
In Guatemala, families commonly arrange funerals shortly after a loved one's death. Following Yuleidy's collapse, her relatives purchased a coffin and organized a funeral just eight hours later.
Family members and mourners gathered at the family's home in the village of El Jocote at approximately 2:30 p.m.
However, the ceremony soon took an extraordinary turn.
Teenage Girl Wakes Up Inside Coffin During Funeral
As mourners gathered around the coffin, Yuleidy's mother, Lesvia Rios, noticed faint movement inside.
Video footage captured the astonishing moment, which quickly spread across social media.
"I kept saying she was alive; she wasn't dead," Rios said.
"When I was crying on top of her casket, we opened the window and she was moving, she was waking up and suddenly she sat up."
Stunned relatives immediately helped the teenager out of the coffin and offered her water, while family members shouted "hallelujah" in celebration.
Yuleidy later recalled the moments leading up to her collapse while traveling with her father.
"My heart started hurting really badly, it felt heavy and then I blacked out, like I fainted," Yuleidy said, recalling the moment in the car.
Reports indicate that the teenager is now conscious and recovering at home. She has since expressed gratitude to God for surviving the ordeal.
The extraordinary incident has sparked widespread reactions online, with some describing her apparent return from the dead as a "miracle," while others raised concerns about the potential trauma she experienced.
