A Florida beach was the scene of a shark attack on a 17-year-old girl, but thanks to her resistance and her brother’s rapid action, she is still alive today.
A shark bit Addison Bethea as she was scalloping close to Grassy Island and Keaton Beach. 5 feet of water surrounded the area.
When something grabbed my leg the next thing I knew, I immediately thought, “That’s not right.” When I turned around, I saw an enormous shark, the young man told Good Morning America.
The shark bit Addison so hard that she was unable to reach its snout, despite the fact that she had watched on Animal Planet that you should punch a shark in the nose if it bites you. She persisted in fighting it and made an effort to do it with just her hands.
Rhett Willingham, Addison’s brother, jumped into the water to assist her as soon as he noticed the blood.
“She came back up, and I saw, like, blood and everything, and I saw the shark,” he remarked.
I swam across, grabbed her, and pushed them all in an effort to separate them. He continued to arrive. I then kicked him, grabbed her, and swam backwards before screaming for assistance.
Rhett, a 22-year-old EMT and firefighter in Taylor County, continuously kicked and thrashed the shark to free his sister. When she was free, he seized her and loaded her onto his boat.
Rhett loaded Addison onto his boat when a nearby boater realized that they were in distress and volunteered to help.
To staunch the bleeding, he made a 4-foot bandage out of boat rope and wrapped it around her right upper thigh. Rhett requested an ambulance and then used the boat to return to land.
Addison suffered severe injuries and had to be transported by air roughly 80 miles to Tallahassee Memorial Hospital, where she was first described as having a dangerous condition.
She underwent immediate surgery and underwent reconstruction. She had a fairly nasty injury to her right leg, which was unfortunate.
According to Addison’s father Shane, “the shark bit her right leg, and the front quad muscle was destroyed.”
“It was awful, a nasty wound. A vein from the left leg was used by the vascular surgeon to create an artery for the right leg.
Her leg shouldn’t be amputated at the hip, say the doctors. In order to attach equipment to her lower limb, surgeons will also try to preserve enough of its flesh.
The fact that she is still alive is the most crucial factor. said Shane.
Despite having just gone through a terrifying experience, Addison is remaining positive. Her friends also visited her in the ICU.
“She was typing on her phone to talk to us when she woke up. She was having fun and cracking jokes about beating up the shark, Shane posted on Facebook.
The very first thing Addison asked for was a Wendy’s Frosty.
The teen is already scheduled for a second surgery to assess the extent of the injury and choose the best course of action for saving her limb.
Although the sheriff’s office doesn’t know what species of shark bit Addison, it was roughly 9 feet long.
All swimmers and scallop hunters in the region were also sent safety warnings.
According to the sheriff’s office, swimmers and scallopers should be cautious around sharks.
Don’t swim alone, keep a safe distance from fisherman, avoid sandbars, where sharks like to hang out, avoid swimming near large schools of fish, and keep your movements in the water orderly.
You can send a check to the Buckeye Community Federal Credit Union with “Addison Bethea” put on the memo line to assist with Addison’s medical expenditures. 1825 S. Jefferson St., Perry, FL 32348 is the location.
To learn more about the story, click on the NBC News movie below.
