Surfer attacked by shark off Oregon coast
A surfer in Seaside, Oregon, was bitten by a shark and suffered non-life-threatening injuries to his lower leg. CBS affiliate KOIN-TV reports the incident took place about 3:20 p.m. Sunday in a popular surfing spot in South Seaside known as The Cove, near Tillamook Head, according to Jon Rahl, a spokesman for the city.
In a news release, the city released an image of shark bite marks covering a surfboard.
Seaside Fire and local medics arrived at the scene to find the adult male victim being carried to the parking lot by fellow surfers. An off-duty Seaside lifeguard had applied a field tourniquet to the man's leg to help slow the bleeding.
The victim was transferred to the trauma unit of the local hospital with non-life-threatening injuries. His condition is not known.
Rahl credited the quick response of fellow surfers and said it was a valuable reminder not to recreate alone. "The fact that there were additional people on scene helped move this along pretty quickly," he said.
Sunday's attack came nine years to the day after another surfer suffered a shark bite at the Seaside Cove. That victim, a female, also survived with non-life-threatening injuries.
Oregon has recorded a total of 28 shark attacks since 1837, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History, which tracks shark attacks worldwide. Shark attacks are relatively rare, and the museum's website notes, "Bees, wasps and snakes are responsible for far more fatalities each year. In the United States deaths occur up to 30 more times from lighting strikes per year, than from shark attacks per year."
