A surfer visiting Florida has been bitten by a shark.
An unidentified 14-year-old was hitting the waves off New Smyrna Beach July 11 around 11:30 a.m. when a shark grabbed his foot as he paddled his board in chest-deep water.
The Ohio teen was able to paddle back to shore and alert authorities.
Beach Safety Ocean Rescue responded to the scene near the 27th Avenue Beach approach.
The teenager had a roughly 4-inch diameter bite wound on his left foot. He was treated on scene and released. Rescue personnel advised the teen to seek treatment for the minor wound because of the high risk of infection.
Related: What you can do to prevent a shark attack
This is the second bite reported in New Smyrna this year.
A fisherman was bitten on the foot by a small lemon shark he caught on May 27.
On May 25 a teen was bitten near the 200 block north at Daytona Beach. An unidentified 12-year-old was standing in waist-deep water around 2 p.m. when he was bitten on the foot.
The most serious bite in the state of Florida this year occurred at Coco Beach on May 26.
Cody High was playing with his family in water when a bull shark grabbed his leg around 5 p.m.
The 15-year-old had extensive injuries to the back of his right leg.
Brevard County Fire Rescue took High, who is visiting from San Angelo, Texas, to Cape Canaveral Hospital. After evaluation, he was transferred to the Arnold Palmer Hospital for Children where surgery was performed.
Tracking Sharks is also investigating two bites, one of which was provoked and the other unconfirmed, in the Florida Keys.
There have been a total of 49 shark attack bites (36 with injury, 7 of which are considered provoked*) publicly reported in 2018. One fatal**; 12 were reported in the U.S., with 4 occurring in Florida and 2 in Hawaii. Fifteen have been reported in Australia, none fatal. Five unconfirmed bites, worldwide, not included in the total count.
All locations have been marked on the 2018 Shark Attack Bites Tracking Map.
*Provoked defined as spearfishing, feeding sharks, fishing, etc. (listed with green marker).
**One possible scavenge.
