47-Year-Old Man Airlifted to Hospital After North Carolina Shark Attack
This is the fifth reported shark attack in North Carolina this month.
— -- A man was injured today in a possible shark attack at a beach in Avon, North Carolina, authorities said.
The 47-year-old man was swimming about a mile north of the Avon Fishing Pier when he was bit in the right leg and lower back just before noon, the National Park Service said in a statement.
This is the fifth shark attack along the North Carolina coastline in the past month. A 13-year-old girl was bitten in the foot at Ocean Isle, North Carolina, on June 11. Hunter Treschl, 16, lost his arm in an attack on June 14 at Oak Island, North Carolina, and Kiersten Yow, 12, was bitten in the arm and leg less than 90 minutes before Treschl’s attack. An 8-year-old boy was bitten on Wednesday at Surf City, North Carolina.
“This guy was in waist-deep water about 10 feet away from where my friend and I were walking on the beach when we heard him screaming 'Shark! Shark!'" Johnny Supan, who witnessed the attack, told ABC News today.
“Right away there was a guy that had a water bottle cleaning his wounds and his wife was trying to put pressure on them,” he added.
The victim was treated by paramedics at the scene before being airlifted to Norfolk General Hospital in Norfolk, Virginia, according to the NPS.
No other swimmers were injured and Supan said the man’s son, who was swimming with him, got out of the water unhurt.
“He was dizzy and in shock when he came out of the water,” Supan said of the victim. “I think we were all in shock.”