SOUTHWEST MIAMI-DADE, FLA. (WSVN) - A man is now out of the hospital and on the mend after a shark attack in Key West.
Fourty-three-year-old Dave Daniel was standing in shallow water at a sandbar off Boca Grande Key when he was bitten on the foot by a nurse shark.
“We got a call from the Coast Guard. They’ve had a very bad shark bite. Arterial bleed at Boca Grande. There’s no [estimated time of arrival] yet because the patient is still on the beach area,” said a 911 dispatcher.
Fortunately, good Samaritans were nearby and jumped into action, bringing him to shore and tending to him while they waited for help from the U.S. Coast Guard to arrive.
“There happened to be two nurses at the same boat with the individual, who were able to apply initial first aid and put on a tourniquet, ’cause there appeared that he had an arterial bleed coming from the shark attack,” said U.S. Coast Guard Machine Technician 2nd Class Louis Bosc.
One of those nurses was Christopher Green, who shared his story on how Daniel survived the injury.
“We did our job as nurses to help control the bleeding and get the limb elevated, and we hollered for somebody to call the Coast Guard,” he said.
The U.S. Coast Guard escorted the good Samaritan’s boat to its pier where Monroe County Fire Rescue was waiting.
Upon their arrival, the man was airlifted 128 miles to Jackson South Medical Center in Southwest Miami-Dade.
He was airlifted to Jackson South Medical Center in Southwest Miami-Dade and successfully underwent 2 surgeries, and he is in good spirits.
Daniels said that he will have a long recovery that will require months away from work as well as physical therapy.
Daniels has a GoFundMe to assist with his recovery. To donate to help with medical bills, click here.
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