6-foot shark bites man's hand and leg when he lands on it while surfing in Florida's New Smyrna Beach
NEW SMYRNA BEACH, FLORIDA: A man has lived to tell the tale after being bitten by a shark while surfing in New Smyrna Beach on the mid-Atlantic coast of the panhandle state.
Don Walsh, 40, was surfing in waist-deep waters at around 11:55 a.m. Tuesday, August 27, when he caught air on a wave. After being airborne for a moment or two, the surfer landed on top a 6.5-foot shark, according to Tamra Malphurs who works at Volusia County Beach Safety Ocean Rescue.
"Took a wave, one thing I never do. I never really try to throw an air but I tried to throw one. Didn't land it, landed on a shark instead and he decided to take a bite out of me," Walsh told Orlando News 6.
He added that he did not notice the enormous predator until it had bitten his left hand and calf. He even posted photos of his injuries on social media.
“It felt like a freight train hit me and the first thing I could think of was to literally push him away from me. As soon as it happened, I grabbed my board and started to paddle as fast as I could," he said.
Walsh, who works at an office near the beach, told the Daytona Beach News-Journal that he had taken the day off to go surfing and had been riding the waves for quite some time when the incident happened. He was about to call it a day when he decided to catch a few more waves.
Although he was not very good at being airborne, he wanted to give it a try before heading home. “I never did see the shark as I was coming down,” Walsh said. “I did see it after the bite happened.”
Malphurs said that Walsh was treated by paramedics on the scene but refused further treatments and was not transported to the hospital.
Walsh said that he had no intention of giving up surfing—a sport that he has enjoyed for 30 years—despite the injury. "I'll get back in as soon the stitches come out and the wounds are closed up, I'll get back in the water," he said. "I’ll definitely be a little more cautious.”