A nine-year-old girl was attacked by a shark while she was snorkeling off the coast of Boca Grande, Florida. According to WFLA, Leah Lendel did not expect a shark to bite her hand off during her family vacation.
Videos by Suggest
9-Year-Old Girl’s Hand Bitten Nearly Entirely Off By Shark Off Florida Coast
Just a few feet away, her mother was watching her swim. She noticed her daughter go underwater to snorkel, then suddenly come back up to scream. Leah’s entire arm was covered in blood, her hand nearly severed from her wrist.
They quickly rushed her back to shore and received help from a nearby construction crew. Although first responders couldn’t find the shark once they arrived, Boca Grande fire officials confirmed these injuries lined up with a typical shark bite.
One of the witnesses noticed that the shark that bit Leah continued to chase after her. “We saw the shark rushing in the water, it was right there, right behind her,” said Raynel Lugo to WFLA. “We were trying to get her out… it was still chasing her.”
He initially thought someone was drowning until he spotted the blood. “That’s when we knew it was serious,” said Lugo. This witness was also the one to call 911.
Emergency responders flew Leah to Tampa General Hospital. Upon arrival, she underwent a six-hour surgery to reattach her hand. Luckily, the surgery was a success, and the mother confirmed that the surgeons reattached Leah’s hand.
“They had to get arteries from her leg to the hand,” said Leah’s mother, Nadia Lendel. “Got the blood flow back to her hand. Install pins in bones. Still has open tissues. They will be monitoring her here for a week. But thank God she can move her fingers.”
According to Marine Biologist Deby Cassill from the University of South Florida, this time of year is when shark sightings typically increase. “They are hungrier this time of year, and anything moving or splashing will attract their attention,” said Cassill.
For worried families, Cassill recommends they visit busier beaches. Sharks are less likely to show up in busy waters. “Go to beaches where there is a large population of other people,” she explained. “It could reduce the chances of an encounter.”
Leah’s family released a statement thanking everyone for “praying for our sweet Leah.” They thanked the construction workers and bystanders who ran to help, as well as the doctors and nurses.
“The fact that Leah has all her fingers attached is already a testimony,” it read. “From witnessing her wrist hanging on by just the skin, to have blood flow in all of her hand and fingers is truly a miracle.”