John Schweizer, a 69-year-old man from Niantic, Connecticut, was bitten by a shark while snorkeling with his family in the Bahamas. The incident occurred on what was supposed to be a celebratory snorkeling trip during his 40th wedding anniversary cruise.
While snorkeling with his wife, Marcy, and their adult sons, Tom and Joe, Schweizer was bitten on the left shin by what he described as a seven-foot reef shark. His wife initially thought he was "fooling around" when he was pulled underwater. His son, Tom, had seen the shark approaching but was unable to warn his father in time.
After the attack, Schweizer swam approximately 40 feet back to the boat. He noticed significant bleeding, and the other passengers quickly removed everyone from the water. The boat's emergency room doctor treated the wound, cleaning it meticulously and administering 26 stitches to his leg and four to his hand, which he believes may have been caught on the shark's fin. The doctor, who had not previously treated a shark bite, spent three hours on the procedure. The wound exposed bone, but Schweizer credits adrenaline for masking any immediate pain.
While awaiting a speedboat to take them to shore, passengers used towels and a tourniquet to control the bleeding. Schweizer was eventually able to return to Connecticut the following day. Neighbors greeted him upon his return, some dressed in shark costumes. Schweizer, an avid fisherman, has encountered sharks before but stated that he is comfortable swimming with them and will not do so again after this experience.
Caribbean reef sharks can grow up to 10 feet long, and attacks on humans are rare, with only four recorded incidents involving this species, according to the Florida Museum of Natural History. Advice for swimmers in waters with reef sharks includes cannonballing to startle them into deeper water.