Blood Seen Spewing from Teen's Severed Arm After Shark Attack Just 1 Day After Another Attack
Two teenagers have been attacked by sharks in as many days at the same beach in Pernambuco State, Brazil.
The latter victim, 15-year-old Kaylane Timóteo Freitas, had her arm ripped off by a shark while swimming in the waters off Piedade Beach on Monday, the Daily Star reported.
The attack came just one day after a 14-year-old boy was surfing when was attacked by a shark only 500 yards down the beach and suffered severe injuries to his leg, exposing his femur, according to the U.K.’s Daily Mail. Doctors eventually had to amputate the leg.
Eyewitnesses reported seeing the Freitas’ arm “ripped clean off” by the shark, with blood seen spewing from the wound.
The girl was quickly rushed to the hospital for emergency treatment, and doctors amputated her arm due to the severity of the injury.
Experts consider the Greater Recife area, where Piedade Beach is located, the most deadly shark attack spot in the world, according to the Daily Star.
According to the Daily Mail, swimming at Piedade Beach was banned in 2021 because of the danger of shark attacks.
“Unfortunately, there is a law that says that swimming is not allowed, but people insist on going into the sea,” Paramedic Marcelo Alves told local media, according to the Daily Star.
The outlet reported that about 150 signs along roughly 22 miles of beach along the Pernambuco State warn swimmers of the potential danger.
Local resident Andréa Caribé, a psychologist, said that even after Freitas had been “covered in blankets and was being taken away,” some people insisted on being in the demonstrably shark-infested waters.
“Even after that, some people remained in the water,” she told local media, according to the Daily Mail. “They [lifeguards] were pulling people out.”
It was not immediately clear why lifeguards were posted on a beach where swimming is prohibited.
Only two weeks prior, another surfer was bitten by a shark at Praia Del Chifre in Olinda, not far from the latter two attacks, the Daily Mail reported.
Shark attacks are relatively rare, but they can be deadly when they do occur.
According to Florida Museum’s International Shark Attack File, there were 57 unprovoked shark attacks in 2022, resulting in five fatalities.
The most common species of shark involved in these attacks are the great white shark, tiger shark and bull shark, the Daily Mail reported.
The Daily Star suggested localized overfishing, along with larger ocean-front human populations such as the 4 million residents of the Recife area, has put pressure on shark habitats, contributing to larger numbers of shark attacks.
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