A male swimmer was attacked by a Great White Shark near the Manhattan Beach Pier on Saturday morning, witnesses and police said. After initially being reported in critical condition, the swimmer is now in stable condition, reported the Manhattan Beach Patch.
The seven-foot shark bit the unidentified swimmer, who was training 60 feet off the Los Angeles County shore for long distance swims, at about 9:30 a.m., according to the Los Angeles County Fire Department's Twitter page. Roughly 40 minutes prior to the attack, the shark had been "hooked" by a fisherman and was allegedly in a state of panic, Los Angeles Times reported.
Witness Aram Ozen said he was surfing near the pier when a man swimming with a group was attacked. At first, he said, witnesses thought the victim was having trouble swimming. But then he suddenly heard a couple of people screaming, "White, white!" referring to a great white shark. "It was a scary scream," Ozen said. "It was kind of freaky. There were a lot people screaming back to shore."
The victim was rushed to a local hospital with a bleeding bite wound to his right rib, with local police and firefighters aiding Los Angeles County lifeguards with an "ocean rescue" Saturday morning, Manhattan Beach Police Lt. Ryan Small said. "I saw blood on his right rib," Ozen said. "He was a little bit in shock." Although the victim was awake and talking to the paramedics, Small would not confirm that the man was bitten by a shark or comment on the extent of his injuries. A representative for the L.A. County Fire Department, which oversees the lifeguard program, was not immediately available for further comment.
Following the attack, a two-mile stretch of beach was closed, in addition to officials clearing everyone out of the water, according to the Hermosa Beach Patch. Life guards in boats guided the shark back to sea.
The attack follows a series of shark sightings in the area. Last month, a great white shark was spotted swimming ominously close to paddleboarders in Manhattan Beach, CBS News reported.
