According to first responders, a child who was attacked by a shark while swimming along the Gulf Coast of Florida on Wednesday is recuperating in a Florida hospital.
The victim, according to friends, was a 9-year-old girl playing with her siblings on Boca Grande Beach at the time of the incident.
According to witnesses, first responders showed very promptly but decided she needed to be evacuated to a nearby hospital because of the severity of her injuries.
Her family has provided updates, stating that the girl suffered severe hand injuries and would require a lengthy recuperation period.
“We’re thankful to Jesus for the quick response of emergency crews and the skill of the medical team, she is now stable and going through surgery – fighting hard for her road to recovery,” pals said on a GoFundMe page.
The ocean has been calmer than it has been in recent weeks, and Lee County authorities have not reported any occurrences with marine life.
The Sunshine State tops the country in unprovoked shark bites each year, despite the rarity of attacks.
The Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File reports that 14 unprovoked bites occurred in the state in 2024, making up half of all reported incidents nationwide.
More than a third of the almost 1,000 instances that have been reported in the state since 1882 have taken place in Volusia County, which includes towns like Daytona Beach and New Smyrna Beach.
The number of assaults per year is concerning, although a bite is still regarded as uncommon, according to Dr. Jim Gelsleichter, a professor at the University of North Florida and an expert in shark endocrinology worldwide.
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“Increased amounts of visitors to the beaches in the summer months, combined with shark populations being at seasonal highs and sharks swimming closer to the shores to chase bait fish, can result in more shark attacks than in winter months but bites typically aren’t fatal,” Gelsleichter said in a release.
The latest known fatal shark attack in Florida occurred in 2010, when marine life attacked a kiteboarder off the Treasure Coast near Stuart Beach.
Swimmers and surfers are always cautioned by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission to stay out of the water at dusk, when shark activity is at its highest.
Additionally, beachgoers are cautioned from going into the water if they are wearing dazzling jewelry or have an open wound because these items can draw sharks.
Purple flags are frequently used by beach lifeguards to signal the presence of potentially harmful marine animals, such as sharks, stingrays, or jellyfish.
