A planned idyllic holiday quickly turned into a terrifying ordeal for a tourist who ventured too close to a shark.
While vacationing in the Caribbean, a woman lost both of her hands after attempting to photograph a shark.
The incident occurred when she waded into hip-deep waters to capture a picture of the shark, which was estimated to be between six to nine feet in length. Authorities reported that the event happened near the shore of Providenciales, the central island in the Turks and Caicos archipelago.
The attack took place on Friday, February 7, at the eastern end of Blue Hills Beach, close to Da Conch Shack and Thompson’s Cove Beach. The shark involved was identified as either a bull shark or a tiger shark.
After the attack, she was transported to a medical facility where doctors amputated one hand at the wrist and the other midway down her forearm.
Eyewitnesses who rushed to help the woman described the chilling scene.
One witness recounted that her family was nearby during the attack, and despite her injuries, she managed to walk back to the beach.
Her husband bravely tried to fend off the shark while bystanders used cloths to staunch the bleeding on her arms.
Another observer noted the shark continued to thrash in the shallow waters for approximately 40 minutes after the attack: “I was there for 40 minutes, and it was still lingering.”
The Department of Environment & Coastal Resources Authorities released a statement on the incident: “On Friday 7th February a tourist was injured by a shark in the waters adjacent to Blue Hills, Providenciales.”
“The individual was taken to Cheshire Hall Medical Centre where she was stabilized and later flown off island for further medical care,” they added.
Following the confirmation of the shark attack, the Department issued a beach closure notification from Thompson’s Cove Beach to Froggies ATV in Blue Hills as a precautionary measure. The beach was reopened on Sunday, February 9th at 1pm after determining the shark had relocated to deeper waters.
The statement concluded with a cautionary note, advising tourists against similar interactions with marine wildlife due to the potential dangers involved.