2 days ago
Boca Grande shark attack nearly severed Florida girl's hand
The Brief
A 9-year-old girl was bitten by a shark while snorkeling off Boca Grande, nearly severing her hand.
She was airlifted to Tampa General Hospital, where doctors successfully saved her hand after hours of surgery.
Experts say shark attacks are rare in the area, but Boca Grande waters are known for large predators like bull sharks.
TAMPA, Fla. - A Florida girl is recovering after being bitten by a shark earlier this week.
The backstory
Leah Lendel, 9, was snorkeling with her family at Boca Grande when she was bitten by a shark, leaving her hand "hanging by a little piece of skin," according to a witness.
A nearby construction crew rushed to help, pulling her from the water and calling 911.
She was airlifted to Tampa General Hospital, where she underwent an hours-long surgery involving bone reconstruction, artery grafts from her leg, and tendon and nerve repair.
READ: Trump pardons 2 divers who freed 19 sharks off the coast of Florida
Her mother, Nadia Lendel, posted on social media that doctors were able to restore blood flow to the entire hand and all fingers. Leah is now able to move two of them—a promising sign.
What they're saying
"For a complex injury like this, you have to reconstruct the bone, the nerve, the artery, the tendons—each of those requires their own repair and rehab," explained Dr. Roger Casey Gaskins, Upper Extremities Surgeon. "These aren't clean injuries. Everything is torn and displaced in different directions."
"An injury like a shark bite is not a nice, clean surgical incision. It's not only cutting—it's also crushing and tearing, which is gruesome to think about," said pediatric plastic surgeon Dr. Alex Rottgers. "Injuries like that have a way of progressing and developing over time. The damage you see at first isn't always the full picture."
Seasonal shark activity
"Boca Grande is a very sharky area, especially this time of year," said Dr. Robert Heuter of Mote Marine Lab. "But remember—we're not on the shark's menu."
This was the first reported shark bite in Boca Grande since 2019. Experts say the area is known for seasonal shark activity, especially during tarpon fishing season.
The Source
The Source: Interviews with a Tampa pediatric plastic surgeon, and an upper extremities orthopedic surgeon. FOX13's Evyn Moon also spoke with an expert of the Mote Marine Lab's Shark Research Center.
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