Shark Attack! Florida Teen Punches Shark in Face, Survives Brutal Attack

It’s that time of year again! Florida’s beaches are packed, bikini-clad women are everywhere, and the sharks are prowling. Not the land sharks, but the kind that swims in the ocean. Certainly, there are plenty of the land variety as well, but they might be less dangerous than the water-bourne ones if the early returns are any indication.

There are shark “attacks” every year off the coast of Florida, and that’s not an unreasonable expectation as waters heat up and sharks come closer to the shore in search of food. Fatalities are extremely rare, but it is still best practice to know what to do in the unlikely event you have a close encounter with Jaws.

Recently in Florida, a teenage girl had a scary encounter with a bull shark that left her battered and bloody, but her quick thinking and a stiff right hook saved her life. Check this out.

The teen, Ella Reed, told WPLG that she was sitting in the shallow water near a jetty at Fort Pierce Beach when she suddenly felt a piercing pain in her side and came face to face with the predator.

“The shark itself was so powerful,” she told the outlet. “That was what I felt the most because it was hitting my stomach really hard,” she said.

That experience would be enough for most people to decide they like the mountains better than the beach, but Reed, a Florida native, knew exactly what to do as the bull shark continued its assault.

She said she punched the shark — which she described as a five to six-foot-long bull shark — forcing it to temporarily retreat before it returned.

“It wouldn’t leave me alone, so I had to use my arm and use my hand too, so it got my arm and my finger,” she said.

Perhaps more young ladies should use this method against the land sharks. It might be just as effective. As the stubborn bull shark returned for another nibble, the shaken teen called out for her mother and brother, and they assisted her out of the water to safety.

When the shark approached her again, Reed, bleeding, cried out for her mom and brother who were at the beach with her. 

“It was insane because she was totally covered in blood pretty much from head to toe so she couldn’t really see what went on,” said Reed’s mother.

The teen was shaking, but appeared calm, her mother said.

She was bitten in the stomach, arm, finger and the top of her knee, Reid told WPLG.

She said she didn’t feel much pain “because the adrenaline was through the roof.”

The teen received 19 stitches and one cool story to tell her friends, as well as some bad-ass scars, but is she moving to the mountains? Nope, she is getting right back in the water, hopefully after the stitches come out.

Despite the terrifying encounter, the Florida native said she won’t hesitate to get right back in the water.

“It was clear water so you never really know when it’s going to happen,” she said.

Notice: This article may contain commentary that reflects the author's opinion.

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