A surfer has revealed the terrifying moment an 8-foot shark sank its teeth into his legs, ripping open the flesh before he was miraculously able to make it back to the shore in Hawaii.
Koa Smith, a 38-year-old father of two, was surfing at Kaikoos on the South Shore of his native Oahu when he felt something grab him from behind.
“It really did feel like somebody just came from behind, grabbed my ankle and pulled,” Smith told Hawaii News Now.
“I was just confused. So I turned around to see who’s doing this, who’s grabbing me. And yeah, it was a shark,” he added.
Smith believes he was attacked by an 8-foot Galapagos shark, leaving him with a 10-inch wound on his left leg and a 5-inch wound on his right.
“The whole side of my [left] calf is pretty much wide open. And then my right foot has a pretty big gash on it. Yeah, so it got both legs,” he said.
Despite the shocking attack, Smith said he was able to shake off the shark and paddle back to shore, crawling across the sand and yelling for help before three bystanders rushed to assist him and call 911.
Smith is continuing to recover from multiple surgeries in The Queen’s Medical Center following the May 30 attack.
The lifelong Oahu native spent four years as a Coast Guard lifeguard and has spent three decades as a surfer.
“I’ve been in the water my entire life. Surfing over 30 years, but I also dive, body surf, body board. Pretty much my entire life is in the ocean,” Smith said.
Doctors say Smith should make a full recovery in just six weeks, and the self-employed carpenter says he is already missing the ocean.
“Just watching on Instagram all the waves that I’m missing kind of sucks. But as soon as the doctors let me, I’m back out there,” he said.
Last month’s shark attack took place near Cromwell’s Beach, according to the Honolulu Ocean Safety Department (HOSD).
“Following the incident, HOSD personnel conducted an assessment of the area and confirmed the presence of an aggressive shark near the swim area and surf break,” the department told ABC News.
“Warning signs have been posted, and ocean users are strongly advised to stay out of the water in the affected area until further notice,” the HOSD continued.
Reports of “two aggressive sharks, each estimated at approximately 8 feet in length,” had been spotted in the area on the day, according to the HOSD.
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