Gloucestershire, United Kingdom

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In a shocking attack, a stranger had "bitten off" the face of a teenage girl on a bus, because of which she had to receive 50 stitches.

The 19-year-old Ella Dowling was going home on the bus with fellow passengers when 53-year-old Darren Taylor started making inappropriate comments about her and her friends.

When Ella sat down on the bus, Taylor suddenly grabbed her face and started biting her nose and mouth in a horrific five-minute-long attack.

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Ella's friends helped her get away from the attacker and the passengers on the bus detained Taylor till police arrived at the location.

The police arrested the man for causing grievous bodily harm to the girl. The attack left Ella's nostril and lower part of her lip hanging off.

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The girl's right side of her lip had been split open and she suffered ''visible bite marks'' over her face.

Last November, the teen was taken to Cheltenham Hospital, from where she was transferred to Gloucester Hospital for emergency surgery.

Taylor was sentenced to six years and nine months of imprisonment at Gloucester Crown Court after he pleaded guilty.

Teen says she suffers from PTSD after bus attack

Speaking to The Sun, Ella, a social work student at Portsmouth University, said, "The pain I felt when he sank his teeth into my face is something which will stay with me forever. He was like a dog with a toy; moving his head side to side. I put my hands around the back of his head because I knew if I didn't he would rip my lip and nose off completely."

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"When I saw my face for the first time after the attack, I didn't recognise my own reflection, and I couldn't look in the mirror for months after that. I haven't used the bus since because of my PTSD. If I leave the house, I have to be on the phone with my mum or a friend because I'm terrified that I'm going to be attacked again," she added.

"Eating and drinking can still be painful if I eat on a certain side. People say that my scar is healing well but for me, it's more than a scar, it's a disfigurement and a permanent reminder of what's happened to me. I smile and speak differently which is something I'm going to have to learn to live with for the rest of my life," she said. 

(With inputs from agencies)