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A 22-year-old Tampa woman has undergone surgery to repair her left leg; she was bit by shark in Bay

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A 22-year-old Tampa woman is recovering from a bull shark attack that occurred in Tampa Bay.

Krystal MaGee told ABC Action News she and other families launched a sailboat out a marina in downtown St. Petersburg May 21 and sailed about three miles offshore when they decided to jump in for a swim.

MaGee estimates the water was about 19 feet deep.

She had family members around her on paddle boards when she was bit the first time on her toes.

"It came up from under and bit," said MaGee.

The bull shark bit her a second time in the ankle.

"I didn't think it was a shark at first and then I realized something bit me and I started screaming," MaGee recalled.

According to MaGee, her brother-in-law scooped her up and put her on a buoy.  Her sister jumped into the water to help get her back to the boats and that's when MaGee's parents then pulled her back on to the boat.

MaGee says her father applied pressure to the wound while other family members radioed the U.S. Coast Guard.

A rescue helicopter was dispatched but MaGee was towed to shore before the helicopter arrived.

She was taken by ambulance to Bayfront Hospital.

Doctors would initially sew her wounds up with 27 stitches.

She would undergo surgery three days later.

"They had to repair two tendons that move your foot and then the muscle on the bottom of my foot," MaGee explained.

She now has 20 stitches on the outside of her foot along with 10 staples. Doctors also used 15 stitches on the interior tendons and muscles.

Doctors at the hospital determined it was a shark attack based on the jaw marks left behind, MaGee said.

MaGee's family recalls seeing a four to five foot shadow in the water following the attack. The water was too murky to determine what was swimming alongside them.

MaGee is now on crutches and cannot go to work for at least a month.

On Saturday, the Revolution Ice Cream Company, located in Brandon, is donating 20% of sales to MaGee's medical expense.

She has also started this GoFundMe page.

SHARK EXPERT: TAMPA BAY A BREEDING GROUND FOR SHARKS

MaGee says she was unaware Tampa Bay is a breeding ground, or nursery rather, for bull shark.

Eric Hovland, a curator and shark expert at The Florida Aquarium, says this speaks to the health of the Bay.

"We are seeing everything from scallops to sharks making a comeback in the Bay," said Hovland.  "It is the time of year when sharks are coming in, be they bulls, sharp nose or a variety of sharks in our Gulf and Tampa Bay waters."

He added the conditions are perfect for breeding and for pup sharks to survive.

"It is a feeding ground for the young pups that are maybe a half a meter long.  They are looking for small bait fish," he explained.

While some have described the bull shark as aggressive, Hovland disagrees.  He explained sharks often get confused in murky water and the only way to tell if humans are a fish is to bump and bite.

"This are animals that are bigger sharks just like tiger sharks and great whites, and they tend to make up that top three when we talk about accidents with sharks.  However, a small blacktip shark can do the same as a bull, they might come in to investigate, especially if the water is murky.  They will do a bump, a bite and move on," Hovland said.

However, one bite can prove fatal or leave serious injuries, as in MaGee's case.

"A bull shark is much bigger.  They do have big, sharp teeth.  They are capable of catching larger prey but when they make a mistake it's a bigger mistake," he noted.

Hovland added Bull Sharks tend to move into murky water where they have an advantage in sense of smell, helping them find prey.

ST. PETE FIREFIGHTER SURVIVES BULL SHARK ATTACK
 
St. Pete paramedic/firefighter Rick LePrevost still has the scars and shark bitten shorts as reminders of what lurks below in Tampa Bay.
 
 
"It just came up, grabbed me across the top of my left thigh and my rear end and just pulled me under and for seconds I was gone," he said.
 
LePrevost likens the pain to an unexpected charley horse or cramped feeling accompanied by stiffness.
 
His children were able to make it out of the 20-foot deep water safely.
 
"I got teeth marks across my thigh and my calf is floating open with the saltwater just burning it," he said.
 
Doctors used 150 stitches and 39 staples to repair LePrevost's left leg.
 
And while the attack keeps his now adult children out of most waters, he isn't letting his wounds get in the way of diving and spear fishing.
 
He frequently goes diving to catch grouper. He can recall and instance where some uninvited guests showed up, two bull sharks and a nurse shark.
 
"They were just doing this," LePrevost said while making a circling figure with his hands. "They were looking for the blood from the fish."
 
LePrevost made it out without the sharks taste testing him or his grouper.

PROTECTING YOURSELF FROM SHARK ATTACKS

If Shark Week has you fearful you will become a shark's breakfast, there are things you can do to protect yourself.

Than offers the following safety tips:

  • Swim in groups
  • Avoid being in the water at dusk and dawn when sharks feed
  • Avoid murky water
  • If you see fish schooling, immediately get out of the water
  • Avoid light, shiny clothing

 

ABC Action News will have a full report at 5:15 p.m.