A snorkeler from Georgia is recovering after being attacked by a shark in Sombrero Light Key, Florida.
Andrew Charles Eddy, 30, was with his family Sept. 20 on a private boat, planning to snorkel the Middle Keys off Marathon.
Shortly after entering the water, the Atlanta man was bitten on his right shoulder by what witnesses described as an estimated 8- to 10-foot-long bull shark. The injury was described as severe.
Eddy was transported by boat to Sombrero Beach and arrived around 10:30 a.m. Monroe County Sheriff’s deputies and Marathon Fire Rescue paramedics were waiting, and he was quickly airlifted by Trauma Star air ambulance to a Miami hospital.
“This was a very rare medical crisis for the Florida Keys, but everyone came together — including those witnesses on the boat, to 911 Communicators, to all our emergency responders — in order to ensure this victim received life-saving care,” Sheriff Rick Ramsay said in a statement.
The Sheriff’s office received reports that a bull shark had been observed by boater who had previously been in the area. No fishing or chumming was reported in the area where the group was snorkeling.
The approximate location has been marked on the 2020 Shark Attack Map.
