Latest news with #ChanceArmand
Fox News
3 days ago
- Fox News
'Sharks won't do anything to you': Florida spearfisherman attacked by shark minutes after reassuring family
What began as a routine free-diving trip off Florida's coast ended with a bull shark bite for a veteran spear fisherman—just minutes after reassuring his visiting family not to worry about the famed predators. Chance Armand, 28, who started spearfishing in 2020, took up free diving this year and said that even though sharks are a normal occurrence, "nothing crazy" usually happens. "You run into them, you catch a glimpse of each other, and they might try and punk you for your fish, but they don't actually do anything about it," Armand told Fox News Digital. The Milton local said his perspective changed during an Aug. 2 trip when one of the ocean hunters sank its teeth into his leg, sending him to the emergency room. On the day of the attack, Armand was taking his family, visiting from Oklahoma, out on the water for their first ocean experience. "I was talking to them about getting in the water with me and maybe shooting fish," Armand said. "They were all concerned about sharks, and I'm sitting there blowing them off like, 'Oh, don't worry about it. Sharks won't do anything to you.'" The group spotted a few sharks while fishing, but Armand said he didn't think anything of it. "I decided to take a dive for myself, since everybody else had shot a fish by this point, and took a dive to 65 feet. I hung there for a little bit, waiting for the fish to get used to my presence," he said. "A good-sized yellow jack swam past me, I shot him at 65 feet, and started pulling it in to secure the fish—keep it from struggling in the water column and attracting sharks." At about 55 feet, Armand looked down to see a bull shark "flying up from the bottom." He said Florida sharks often associate boats and the sound of a spear gun going off with an easy meal, prompting their quick response. "He came flying up trying to get the fish before some other shark did, went full send, and connected with me on accident while he was trying to get the fish," Armand said. "As soon as he bit my leg and realized it wasn't the fish, he let go and didn't chew on me or anything, thankfully. It could have been way worse if he decided to gnaw on me for a little bit." The toothy opportunist took the fish and swam back down to the bottom of the ocean, leaving Armand without a fish and a little bit less skin. After resurfacing and letting the others know what had happened, the group climbed back into the boat and hoisted Armand inside. Using a spear gun band, a fillet knife and a T-shirt, they created a makeshift tourniquet to stop the bleeding. Armand posted photos capturing the once-in-a-lifetime experience to Facebook, showing him smiling while holding the tourniquet on the ride back to shore. When asked how it was possible to keep a positive attitude amid the shock and pain of what had just happened, Armand said he controls what he can and "gives God the rest." "When I got on the boat, obviously it was serious. We needed to get the bleeding to stop," he said. "Once we got that tourniquet on and saw that the bleeding stopped, it was kind of a breath of relief. From there on, it was just a boat ride on the ocean, taking a ride back to the dock and just hanging out talking to my cousins from Oklahoma." Once back on land, emergency responders took him to the hospital where he underwent anesthesia to clean and inspect the wound. After a considerable number of stitches, he was able to return home. "It was a blessing," Armand said. "Thankfully, somehow all the teeth danced around all the important stuff—no ligaments, arteries or bones were hit, so no structural damage. They were able to stitch it back together, and I was walking on it the next day." Armand said he posted the now-viral photos on social media in hopes of another diver spotting his missing spear gun, which fell overboard during the scurry to safety. "It just blew up from there," he said. "I'm just kind of taking the opportunity with the attention to bring light to the abundance of sharks we have in the Florida waters. I'd love to see the culture change on sharks in Florida. If you harvest a shark, and you take care of the meat properly, it's great table fare. "We have a lot of sharks in the water, so it's not like we're in danger of hurting the population at all, especially when it comes to bull sharks. They're a dime a dozen out there, we see them every single time we go out. I'd love to see people look at them as more of a renewable resource, just like any other fish in the water, that can be responsibly managed and harvested as food." Undeterred by the attack, Armand said he plans on returning to his ocean hobby once he is fully recovered. "Hopefully, once the stitches are out, I'll be back in the water for grouper season, starting on Sept. 1," he said. "Just as long as I get the green light from the doctor that I'm not going to catch some gnarly infection or something. … I'm a little too dumb to quit. "In the future, I'll definitely not just assume that the sharks aren't going to go all the way when it comes to stealing a fish. They have telltale signs when they're in pursuit mode, like fins down, [so I will] just try and pay more attention to body language." An Escambia County spokesperson told Fox News Digital it received a 911 call about the incident, but Armand was assisted by fire personnel at Naval Air Station Pensacola. NAS Pensacola did not immediately respond to inquiries from Fox News Digital.
Fox News
3 days ago
- Fox News
Florida man says he is 'blessed' after shark attack while spearfishing
Chance Armand, 28, was attacked by a bull shark on Aug. 2 while spearfishing in Florida.
Yahoo
6 days ago
- Yahoo
'He grabbed my knee': Bull shark attacks Florida man
Editor's note: This story contains graphic images that may be disturbing to some viewers. A fisherman is recovering after being attacked by a shark in the Florida panhandle, according to the survivor and local officials. The incident took place on Aug. 2 in waters off the northwest city of Pensacola. Naval Air Station Pensacola responded to the rescue, Escambia County Fire Rescue confirmed to USA TODAY. "It was just after noon," Chance Armand told USA TODAY, as he recalled his attack involving an 8-foot-long shark while spearfishing about 20 miles offshore of Pensacola Pass. "He grabbed my knee then let go and grabbed the fish off of my shaft. It 100% was going for the fish I had shot." Armand, 28, of Milton, said after the shark bit him, his friends pulled him into a boat and applied a tourniquet to his leg before Santa Rosa EMS transported him to a hospital to be treated for the injury. "Spicy Bull shark decided he wanted my fish too on my way up from a dive today," Armand posted on Facebook after the incident. "Couldn't have asked for better people to help me out in the moment. Love what we do but definitely a reminder to soak up every moment with your family and friends because a routine day can be your last." United States shark attacks: See which states had them so far in 2025 How many shark attacks have been reported in Florida this year? In addition to Armand's incident, as of Tuesday, Aug. 12, there had been seven other reported shark attacks in The Sunshine State. According to the most recent reported attack took place on July 22 about 660 miles southeast in Hollywood. About 3 p.m. that day, a Canadian tourist was injured and hospitalized after a shark bit him. The man was in chest-deep water with a friend when a fish jumped over his head and a shark immediately attacked him, Hollywood Fire Rescue and Beach Safety reported. How many people die from shark attacks every year? According to data from the International Shark Attack File (ISAF), run by the Florida Museum of Natural History, the world averages 65 documented shark attacks annually. On average, six fatal attacks are reported each year, data shows. Last year, 47 people were bitten in unprovoked attacks. Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@ and follow her on X @nataliealund. This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Fishermen Chance Armand attacked by shark in Florida
USA Today
6 days ago
- USA Today
'He grabbed my knee': Fisherman recalls being attacked by shark
Editor's note: This story contains graphic images that may be disturbing to some viewers. A fisherman is recovering after being attacked by a shark in the Florida panhandle, according to the survivor and local officials. The incident took place on Aug. 2 in waters off the northwest city of Pensacola. Naval Air Station Pensacola responded to the rescue, Escambia County Fire Rescue confirmed to USA TODAY. "It was just after noon," Chance Armand told USA TODAY, as he recalled his attack involving an 8-foot-long shark while spearfishing about 20 miles offshore of Pensacola Pass. "He grabbed my knee then let go and grabbed the fish off of my shaft. It 100% was going for the fish I had shot." Armand, 28, of Milton, said after the shark bit him, his friends pulled him into a boat and applied a tourniquet to his leg before Santa Rosa EMS transported him to a hospital to be treated for the injury. "Spicy Bull shark decided he wanted my fish too on my way up from a dive today," Armand posted on Facebook after the incident. "Couldn't have asked for better people to help me out in the moment. Love what we do but definitely a reminder to soak up every moment with your family and friends because a routine day can be your last." United States shark attacks: See which states had them so far in 2025 How many shark attacks have been reported in Florida this year? In addition to Armand's incident, as of Tuesday, Aug. 12, there had been seven other reported shark attacks in The Sunshine State. According to the most recent reported attack took place on July 22 about 660 miles southeast in Hollywood. About 3 p.m. that day, a Canadian tourist was injured and hospitalized after a shark bit him. The man was in chest-deep water with a friend when a fish jumped over his head and a shark immediately attacked him, Hollywood Fire Rescue and Beach Safety reported. How many people die from shark attacks every year? According to data from the International Shark Attack File (ISAF), run by the Florida Museum of Natural History, the world averages 65 documented shark attacks annually. On average, six fatal attacks are reported each year, data shows. Last year, 47 people were bitten in unprovoked attacks. Natalie Neysa Alund is a senior reporter for USA TODAY. Reach her at nalund@ and follow her on X @nataliealund.
Yahoo
08-08-2025
- Yahoo
28-Year-Old Spearfisherman Made Make-Shift Tourniquet After Being Bitten by 8-Foot Shark
"By the time I realized that he was not going to stop, all I could do was just throw my knee in between him and my chest," Chance Armand said of the bull sharkNEED TO KNOW Chance Armand was spearfishing off the Florida coast on Aug. 2 when he came into contact with a bull shark after he caught a fish Armand and his friends fashioned a makeshift tourniquet for his injured leg The spearfisherman said he only needed stitches for the biteA Florida spearfisherman recalled his scary encounter with an 8-foot bull shark last weekend that bit him in the leg. Chance Armand, 28, of Milton, spoke with ABC's Good Morning America about his ordeal from Saturday, Aug. 2, when he was spearfishing off the coast of Florida. He told the outlet that he had caught a yellow jack fish and hugged it to prevent it from vibrating in the water, which would alert the sharks underneath. He was on his way up to the surface when he sensed something wrong. "I looked down, and I saw this bull shark come flying up," Armand told GMA. Armand recalled to ABC affiliate WEAR in a separate interview that when he realized the shark wasn't going to stop moving, 'All I could do was put my knee in between him and the fish that was on my chest." The spearfisherman said he was with his friends about 20 miles out from Pensacola Pass, per the local outlet, adding that he had seen the bull shark for the third time that day. Armand later told GMA that no one in his group noticed that he was bitten by the shark. "I just told them there was a shark down there,' he said, 'and so my buddy came over to help ... fight off the sharks, and with his mask in the water, he saw my knee filleted open. And that's when he realized. He was like, 'We need to get everybody in the boat.' " His friends pulled Armand into their boat, Fox affiliate WALA reported. 'We were able to fashion a make-shift tourniquet out of a T-shirt, a speargun band and a fillet knife,' Armand remembered. Emergency responders were at the dock when the group's boat arrived, and Armand was taken to a hospital, per WALA. Fortunately for Armand, he only needed stitches for his injury, although he later told WEAR that he was more upset about losing his speargun during the encounter. He also told WALA that he was lucky there was no bone or artery damage. On Facebook, Armand shared photos from the day of the incident, including a few showing his bloody leg injury. 'Spicy bull shark decided he wanted my fish too on my way up from a dive today. Couldn't have asked for better people to help me out in the moment. Love what we do, but definitely a reminder to soak up every moment with your family and friends because a routine day can be your last,' he wrote. Armand, who noted to GMA and WEAR that there has been an increase in the number of sharks in fishing areas, said that he intends to have a proper medical kit on board for this next fishing excursion. He told WEAR that he hopes his wounds will heal by the start of grouper season next month. Never miss a story — sign up for to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories. 'God is good, he 100% was looking after me," said Armand. PEOPLE reached out to Armand on Friday, Aug. 8, for additional comment. Read the original article on People
