Andrew Fox, whose father Rodney survived a great white shark attack in 1963, has defended Leah Stewart's recollection of her own encounter, pushing back against radio hosts who suggested she may have exaggerated her experience. Stewart, who lost part of her arm in an attack on June 13, detailed her fight for survival on the television program 60 Minutes.
On a Melbourne radio show, hosts Kate Langbroek, Brendan Fevola, and Nick Cody questioned whether Stewart would have had enough time to think during the attack, with Fevola suggesting she was lying. Stewart had recounted deciding which arm to punch the shark with, realizing she was more willing to lose her left arm than her right.
Fox stated that individuals who have experienced near-death events process an "infinite number of possibilities" in mere microseconds. He drew parallels to his father's survival, noting that Rodney Fox, then 23, spearfishing off Aldinga Beach in South Australia, also recalled his encounter with a great white in extraordinary detail. Rodney Fox's account includes thinking he was hit by a train, then a submarine, before realizing it was a shark. In his struggle, he gouged the shark's eyes and later held it in a bear hug as blood filled the water.
"My dad has told me the same detailed story a hundred times over the years," Fox told the Daily Mail. "These are just microseconds but he thought about a friend of his who had been bitten by a shark and then remembered he needed to poke the shark in the eye... He remembers all of that."
During the radio segment, the hosts replayed a portion of Stewart's interview, where she described facing the shark and thinking about her young daughter before deciding to fight back. "She's not going to have a mum," Stewart recalled thinking. "I was like, 'You ugly f***er, you are not taking me away from my daughter.' It was like fighting a dinosaur - it was so big. It was like punching a brick wall."
Radio host Brendan Fevola expressed skepticism, telling listeners, "She's lying! Too much time to think! You're not thinking all that, are you?" Co-host Kate Langbroek initially offered caution, noting the unusual nature of the account and comparing it to professional surfer Mick Fanning's experience, who stated he reacted instinctively without time to think.
Andrew Fox, who runs the Fox Shark Research Foundation, acknowledged that detailed recollections from such traumatic events might seem questionable to those who haven't experienced them. However, he emphasized that Stewart was under severe trauma, and some memories might have been formed during her recovery as she processed the event. "She may have pushed her left arm forward because she plays tennis or had a fall on it previously and it's a natural reaction for her," Fox suggested. "Her brain may already be pre-programmed to do that because of something unrelated."
Stewart's vivid description of her fight, including punching the shark repeatedly and comparing it to hitting a brick wall, was likened by Fox to his father's experience. "Your life is flashing before your eyes and they are not thinking about the attack, its about their reaction to stop it," he said. "It's an interesting phenomenon, she has lost her arm and people are being aggressive and judging her. People can really nit-pick at people's credibility, but her reality is just in survival mode and recounting what happened. It's sad this happened."
The radio hosts' comments drew significant backlash from listeners, many of whom accused the trio of insensitivity and called for their dismissal. One listener wrote, "Let's add to her trauma and grief by undermining the magnitude of her experience." Another commented, "Overpaid armchair shark attack experts talking crap and trying to leverage off a genuine hero's experience."