INJURED – 24 September 2010 – Sandbridge, Virginia Beach, Virginia, US – surfer attacked
Caleb Kauchak rests in hospital following the shark attack. Alongside are his surfing friends.
Caleb Kauchak, 18, suffered wounds to his ankle and knee after being attacked by a shark while surfing at a spot called Porters Island, off Sandbridge, Virginia Beach, Virginia in the United States. The incident happened on Friday afternoon, 24 September 2010.
According to media reports he beckoned the Greek mythological sea god Poseiden to send better surf – saying “Smite me, oh mighty Poseidon!” Instead he was attacked by a shark shortly afterwards.
He and friends were standing next to their boards in chest deep water when they felt something brush past them. The shark then turned and bit Kauchak’s ankle. He jumped onto his board and then the shark bit his knee. It let go and Kauchak paddled to shore with the help of his friends. He didn’t see the shark, but medics confirmed the wounds were consistent with a shark attack.
He was quoted as saying to media: “[After the shark brushed up against them] Kauchak said to his friends ’there is something out here with us’ and I couldn’t even finish my next sentence, before it grabbed my ankle.
“I kind of felt a little bit of a thrashing.”
“From the waist down, he was covered in blood,” a friend, who was in the water with him, added. “It was pretty hectic.”
“I immediately jumped on my board to get my [bleeding ankle] out of the water and as I did I felt my board lean back,” Kauchak said. “I felt a sharp pain in my knee and then after that it let go. It was just a quick bite and release.”
A beachgoer wrapped towels around Kauchak’s wounds to stem the bleeding.
Paramedics took him to Sentara Virginia Beach General Hospital for treatment. He received 51 stitches and is expected to make a full recovery.
There was no mention of what type of shark could have been responsible for the attack.
Sources
The Virginian Pilot
WAVY TV
PIC source: The Virginian Pilot
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