Surfer Bitten By Shark: "I Can't Let Something Like This Bother Me"
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DEERFIELD BEACH (CBSMiami) -- A South Florida surfer, bitten by a shark, lived to talk about it.
After spending the night in the hospital, Peter Kirn, 21, from Clearwater, is recovering and says he got lucky.
"I am very fortunate, it sucks that I got bit by a shark…I got really lucky," said Kirn.
It's something he says he's been around but never expected to happen to him.
"I see them all the time..never been too worried about it," said Kirn. "I never thought I'd get bit by a shark but I guess yesterday was my day."
With a calm attitude, Kirn talked about the frightening experience on Monday afternoon as he surfed with his friend off the waters in Deerfield Beach.
"I was just minding my business surfing...I laid down and I felt something clamp on my foot… I kind of got knocked off my board," said Kirn. "I first thought it was his board and then I turned around and saw it was a spinner shark....I was looking at my foot and I could just feel it pulsing, gushing blood."
That's when he says he swam back to shore and sprinted to get help.
"I ran up to the lifeguard tower and kind of showed him my foot," said Kirn."I didn't know how bad it was until I got out of the beach."
Rescue crews were able to stabilize him before taking him to the hospital where he underwent surgery and got a positive prognosis.
"Lucky for him that it didn't get into the bone," said Emergency Room Physician Nigel Sosan. "I think he'll do fine because it was mainly soft tissues injuries…no loss of function."
With that, Kirn says despite the bite, he'll get back into the water soon enough and fear free ready to surf again as he has done since he was a little boy.
"I like to surf so I can't let something like this bother me," said Kirn.