The man is in stable condition after a shark bit his leg while swimming near the Disney resort of Vero Beach in Florida.
The attack occurred on Thursday morning, when a 54-year-old man was in the ocean near a beach resort, which is two hours southeast of Walt Disney World, according to Vero News.
Indian County Fire and Rescue Battalion Chief Roger Dion told Treast Coast News that the shark bit the man on the shin, near the knee of the front and back of the leg.
“He didn’t see a shark, but it turned out to be a shark bite,” Dion explained.
The man reportedly was vacationing at a Disney resort with his wife, he later said he suddenly felt a bite. The man jumped out of the ocean at about 10:30 a.m., and emergency services soon arrived.
“I saw his face change,” said witness Ken Obrzut, claiming that the shark bit the man about 10-12 meters from the shore, from the place where the waves crashed. “And then he started trying to get out of the water as fast as he could.”
“It was quite a big wound,” he said. “We saw that the shin was torn.”
According to Obrzut, who is vacationing at a resort in Ohio, the medical team of the Disney resort immediately ran to the man to help. Dion said they did a good job putting a tourniquet on the man’s leg and keeping the wounds closed until firefighters arrived.
“There was not much blood,” the fire chief told the newspaper.
A statement from the Indian River County Sheriff said the man was “in stable condition” after the attack.
Dion told Vero News that the man was hospitalized at Sebastian River Medical Center and taken to Lawnwood Regional Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries. According to the sheriff, the type and size of the shark remain unknown.
Treasure Coast Newspapers reports that since March 25, the swimmer was bitten for the third time in the area.