Professional surfer, 23, goes to bar after getting bit by shark to show off his injuries rather than to a hospital to get them treated
A professional surfer who was bitten by a shark while surfing in Florida chose to go to a bar to show off his injuries rather than a hospital to get them treated. Frank O'Rourke, 23, was knocked off his board and was attacked while out at Jacksonville Beach on Saturday, July 27.
The life-threatening incident left Frank an arm with visible teeth marks.
The surfer noted that he was "lucky to still have an arm", as reported by Daily Mail. However, despite this, Frank decided to head to a bar and show off his injuries rather than opting to go to a hospital and get his injuries treated.
Eyewitness RJ Berger said: "It was kind of panic, like, 'Did that just happen?'" Berger noted that Frank did not realize that he had been bitten by a shark and needed treatment. Instead, he decided to carry on with his day in a usual manner.
"It kind of took him a couple of seconds to, like, gather himself and realize, like, 'Wow, I just got bit by a shark,' and then we all went into the beach," he added.
He further added, "He immediately went to a bar 'cause he was like, 'I got bit by a shark' and people were like, 'I'll buy you drinks'. So he went and hung out at the pier."
It is believed that the shark which attacked Frank was a three to five-foot spinner or blacktip shark. After the incident, Frank was treated with bandages by lifeguards at the scene. He noted the incident was being one of the "craziest thing to have happened to me in my life."
Frank noted that the incident happened in a spur of a moment and it did not give him much time to react. "I felt something jump out of the water and latch onto my arm by my elbow. It just grabbed onto me and thrashed in the water and swam away."
He noted that he was very lucky to have survived the attack. "I’m very lucky that I still have an arm. You can see the jawline, like where the jawline is of the shark. There’s still blood on my surfboard," he said. Frank noted that this is the first time that he has been bitten by a shark even though he has been surfing the area for two decades.
Frank noted that it wasn't a surprise to find the shark as they are usually seen while he is surfing. However, he did not expect that any of them would attack as such incidents did not take place often.
"They're usually swimming and doing their own thing. This shark just came out of nowhere. It just came out of the water and grabbed me like it wanted me," he said.
Frank also noted that if something is bound to happen, one cannot stop it from happening. But despite the incident, he felt really good about his luck and was willing to see how far his luck could take him.
"If it’s your time, it’s your time. If the [sharks] want you, they want you. You’re more likely to get struck by lightning than killed by a shark. I’m going to buy a lottery ticket," he noted.
Meanwhile, Berger noted, "He was right there behind the wave and boom, that's when he got hit. It's inevitable, it's going to happen. It's happened to a couple of my friends. It doesn't bother you, but I mean, if it's gonna happen, it's gonna happen. There's nothing much you can do to really stop that, so try not to worry about it."