Girl Has 'Miracle' Surgery After Shark Nearly Bites Off Hand
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources.
A 10-year-old girl whose hand was almost completely bitten off by a shark has reportedly undergone successful surgery to reattach her limb.
Leah Lendel was snorkeling off the coast of Boca Grande, Florida, when the horror unfolded on Wednesday.
The suspected bull shark attack made headlines around the world, and body-worn footage from an attending police officer caught the moment the child's mother, influencer Nadia Lendel, described seeing "blood everywhere" and her daughter's hand "hanging off" as she raised it for help.
The girl was airlifted to Tampa General Hospital, the region's only Level I trauma center, and it's believed she was operated on there. Newsweek has reached out by email to Nadia Lendel seeking comment.
A bull shark pictured on December 21, 2007, in the Bahamas.
A bull shark pictured on December 21, 2007, in the Bahamas.Why It Matters
There had been fears the little girl could be left permanently disabled if surgeons were unable to reattach her hand.
The shark attack follows a number of similar incidents in the waters off the U.S. Coast in recent years. A 45-year-old woman and two teenage girls were injured in separate attacks in Florida's Walton County last June, while attacks have also occurred in a number of other states, such as South Carolina.
What To Know
Police camera footage filmed at the scene last week shows an officer arriving to find Leah Lendel being treated by paramedics as she lies on the sand. "You're being very brave," one tells her. "Very strong."
The officer then speaks to the child's mother, who tells him: "The water was probably 4ft deep. And so she just dips in, like, she always snorkels, and she's up and around. And then she flies out and I look over, because I don't know if I heard a yell or what, but she went like that"—the mom began to weep as she mimed lifting her hand from the water—"and I could see her hand hanging. And there's blood everywhere."
Nadia Lendel has subsequently shared updates on her Instagram page with her 98,000 followers. She described how the shark bit her daughter's wrist, leaving her hand "hanging on by just the skin."
Lendel had been holding her two toddlers in their floaties just a few feet away when her older daughter was attacked, the Gulf Coast News website reported. When the mom realized what had happened, she screamed for help and tried to get her other children to safety. Leah's dad swam to try to help, but Leah managed to make her own way to shore first.
Nearby construction crews rushed to her aid, with one making a tourniquet to stop the bleeding as another called 911, according to reports. Leah's father accompanied her on the flight to the hospital, where the surgeons operated on her for six hours.
The shark vanished after the attack, and swimmers in the area are advised to remain vigilant.
What People Are Saying
Mom Nadia Lendel shared an update on Leah's condition to her Instagram page on Friday, although her account's settings have now been switched to "private." Her daughter underwent a lengthy surgery on Wednesday, she said, and was now "able to move all her fingers." She described the outcome as a "miracle" and went on to thank well-wishers for their support and prayers.
She later sent a brief message to Gulf Coast News saying: "They had to get arteries from her leg to the hand. 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."
What Happens Next
The girl's uncle, Max Derinskiy, has set up a GoFundMe donations page, which has so far raised almost $46,000 of its $80,000 goal.
"While we are beyond grateful that Leah survived, the journey ahead will be long and full of physical and emotional healing," he said. "The Life Flight alone comes with an overwhelming medical bill, not to mention the ongoing care she will need: possible surgeries, physical therapy, counseling, and more. We are setting up this GoFundMe to help relieve some of the financial burden on her family during this unimaginable time as they do not currently have insurance. Every donation—big or small—will go directly to medical expenses, travel costs for treatment, and anything else Leah needs to recover and feel herself again."
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