A college student from Florida recalled how he survived a horrifying shark attack before being rescued by his friend and fellow surfer. 21-year-old Chris Pospisil was attacked by a shark while he and his friend Reece Redish were surfing at New Smyrna Beach about 3 pm last week.
”The shark came from under me on my board and tipped me backwards off my board, and I was falling backwards. I saw my foot in his mouth, and it dragged me under,” the University of Central Florida student told Fox 35 Orlando.
Reece said he heard splashing before noticing his friend underwater. “He pops up screaming, ‘I got bit!’” he said.
Chris said that when he resurfaced, “Reece was already there, already on top of me, got me by my shirt, and pulled me on the board.” ”I’m not going to leave my friend in the water. I’m willing to put myself at risk to help out anyone,” Reeece said.
‘Chris lost about 1 large Chick-fil-a sized cup of blood’
Chris’ cousin, Ashley, has started a GoFundMe to help his family pay for his medical bills. “Chris sustained serious injuries to his foot and needed emergency surgery that took a lil over 4hrs. The surgeon said Chris lost about 1 large Chick-fil-a sized cup of blood, and he repaired 7 Tendons, and a couple of small arteries and had to make a large skin graft to wrap around Chris’s foot from bottom to top. He even found pieces of the shark's tooth shattered and stuck in his bone,” the GoFundMe says.
{{/usCountry}}Chris’ cousin, Ashley, has started a GoFundMe to help his family pay for his medical bills. “Chris sustained serious injuries to his foot and needed emergency surgery that took a lil over 4hrs. The surgeon said Chris lost about 1 large Chick-fil-a sized cup of blood, and he repaired 7 Tendons, and a couple of small arteries and had to make a large skin graft to wrap around Chris’s foot from bottom to top. He even found pieces of the shark's tooth shattered and stuck in his bone,” the GoFundMe says.
{{/usCountry}}“Chris will be unable to work for what we were told a possible 5-6 months as his foot recovers. Chris has been going to UCF in Orlando and is apart of the UCF Surf team, surfing is one of Chris's favorite sports and he has been paying for his apartment and schooling with his job with construction/remodeling interior. Because of the accident he has been set back in his savings for cost of living, schooling, and his hope for joining the military after school. Chris’s mom will also be affected as she is helping with the medical costs,” it adds.
‘It hasn’t changed anything’
”The top of my foot is going to be numb in some areas for the rest of my life, and my foot might be stiff because they had to repair all seven tendons,” Chris said. ”Reece really made the difference. You know, if he wasn’t there, I think it could have been way worse, and I think I definitely wouldn’t have gotten to the shore in time and probably would have passed out in the water.”
The friends said they are planning to go back into the waters as soon as they can. ”I think I can do it. I know I can. When Chris is better, I’ll be surfing with him every day,” said Reece. ”It hasn’t changed anything. I’m definitely going to keep surfing. It’s my lifestyle, and it’s something I love to do,” added Chris.