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Being attacked by a shark is a somewhat reasonable fear that is nonetheless fairly overblown when you take a look at the statistics. With that said, there are certain factors that can increase your risk of succumbing to that fate, and one surfer who was bitten in the face in Florida recently learned that the hard way.
There’s a fairly widespread belief that surfers have a tendency to attract sharks due to their resemblance with other prey, and while some experts dispute that’s actually the case, it’s still pretty hard to ignore the many times people trying to catch some ways have had some very unexpected encounters.
That includes a 16-year-old who gave an interview for the ages after being discharged from the hospital following a shark attack off the coast of New York in 2022, as well as the pro surfer in Florida who opted to take advantage of some free drinks after getting bitten instead of seeking medical treatment.
You probably won’t be too shocked to discover The Sunshine State is a national hotbed for shark attacks, as 60% of the encounters that have been documented since the mid-1800s have taken place in the waters off the coast of Florida.
Earlier this week, Mark Summerset became the latest person to fall victim to one there, as the 38-year-old South Carolina resident was surfing off the shore of New Smyrna Beach (located around 50 miles northeast of Orlando) when he was bitten in the face by a shark while floating in the water next to his board on Monday.
Summerset spoke with WESH after getting approximately 20 stitches to treat the wounds he suffered as a result, and the injuries were on full display during an interview where he recalled what transpired, saying, “It was a slash. It was pressure, and I’ll tell you, that pressure, it was like a crunch; I heard the crunch, and it felt like a bear trap just crunching on my face.”
Summerset said he had a feeling he might draw the attention of sharks after spotting some of them in the water before the attack, and despite the scary nature of the incident, he says he’s not going to think twice about hopping back on his surfboard again.