19 year old Jenna James was bitten on Wednesday July 22nd, 2009 while swimming off of the dock located in her back yard. The bite happened in the afternoon. The type of shark is not known. The water was reported to be murky at the time of the attack.
Ms. James’ injuries, though serious, are not considered to be fatal. Her sister assisted her in getting out of the water and tending to her wounds while waiting for paramedics to arrive.
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Julia Anne Mittelberg of Illinois was bitten at about 3 PM at Holden Beach North Carolina. She was swimming in water approximately four feet deep when she felt the bite on her left foot. She screamed and swam to shore as quickly as she could.
She will fully recover and plans to return to Holden Beach next year as it is her annual vacation destination.
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John Cooper was bitten by a six foot Caribbean Reef Shark on Saturday July 11th 2009 somewhere in the Bahamas. Mr. Cooper is a resident of South Florida and an experienced boat captain. For more than 20 years he has been taking people on fishing trips.
During his most recent trip a reef shark swam close to a member of Mr. Cooper’s fishing party. The man speared the shark through the head. This did not kill the shark and it reacted violently. It bit Mr. Cooper’s left leg. Had the shark severed an artery Mr. Cooper would almost certainly be dead. He had to endure a nearly 2 hour trip to receive medical attention at Jackson Memorial Hospital’s Trauma Center. He received more than 100 stitches.
(editorial comment: this is obviously not an unprovoked attack!)
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37 year old Paul Buckley was bitten while surfing in Jongensfontein in Stilbaai South Africa. The attack happened at approximately 11:15 AM. The size and type of the shark was not known. His surf board had a 20-25 cm chunk missing.
Mr. Buckley suffered a bite to his leg approximately 1 foot wide. Experts examined the bite marks on his surf board and believe the shark to be a great white of greater than 3 and a half meters in length.
14-year-old Pieter de Witt noticed the struggles of Mr. Buckley and rushed to shore to assist him. He and his sister took him to a local doctor who stitched the wound closed. From there he was taken to Mossel Bay Hospital where a specialist tended to his wounds.
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A woman, whose name was not released, was bitten by a nurse shark on July 4th, 2009 on a sand bar near Biscayne National Park in South Florida. The attack occurred at approximately 3:45 PM. The woman felt a bump on her leg and when she looked down she realized she had been bitten by a nurse shark. Her injuries were significant but not life threatening.
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