Teenage woman nearly has her leg bitten off in shark assault in Florida

A 17-year-old teenager, who was bitten by a shark at a Florida seaside Thursday, is present process a second spherical of surgical procedure Saturday within the hope of saving her leg, in keeping with officers.

Addison Bethea was scalloping when the sharp-toothed underwater carnivore attacked her, biting her a number of occasions earlier than her brother jumped in to fend off the creature, Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare stated. She underwent emergency surgical procedure Thursday and is predicted to outlive.

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"Addison has an extended journey to restoration, however she was in good spirits in the present day, surrounded by her household in Tallahassee Memorial’s Pediatric Intensive Care Unit. Addison’s household want to thank their neighborhood in Taylor County and everybody who has reached out providing their prayers and help throughout this tough time," Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare stated in an announcement.

The surgical procedure Saturday will allow medical professionals to evaluate the extent of the injury on her leg and think about remedy choices shifting ahead, in keeping with officers.

Her brother Rhett Willingham, who works as a firefighter, managed to separate her from the shark. He put a tourniquet on her leg to stem the blood loss and was additionally assisted by different boaters and locals within the space, per officers. Bethea was then airlifted to the hospital.

She had been scalloping close to Grassy Island in water that was roughly 5 toes deep. The shark was estimated to be 9 toes lengthy.

"Boaters and swimmers are cautioned to be alert, vigilant, and follow shark security," the Taylor County Sheriff’s Workplace stated, WCTV reported. "Some guidelines to observe are: by no means swim alone, don't enter the water close to fishermen, keep away from areas corresponding to sandbars (the place sharks prefer to congregate), don't swim close to giant faculties of fish, and keep away from erratic actions whereas within the water."

Shark assaults spiked significantly in 2021 with 73 unprovoked occurrences final yr, in comparison with 52 in 2020, researchers on the Worldwide Shark Assault File discovered. Roughly 40% of the worldwide shark assaults reported came about in Florida, which had a complete of 28 shark bites.

Exterior of Florida, the USA recorded 19 shark bites, and the remainder of the world recorded 26 instances, per the Worldwide Shark Assault File.