(News Nation) – A Florida man explained how surfboard leash saved his life after being bitten by a shark while surfing at Newsmyrna Beach.
Matthew Bender joined the Elizabeth Vargas Report to discuss the July 6 attack.
Despite his wounds, he is able to recover in full. It’s a surprising reality when you consider that his forearm is in a shark’s mouth on a holiday weekend.
“I feel so blessed with my life, my arms, my hands and potentially full recovery,” Bender said.
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“It could be absolutely insignificant,” he said of the injury. “Scars aside, I just feel grateful. Thank you, Lord.”
The Bender was paddling for the third wave at News Myrna Beach, known as the world’s shark bite capital, when he felt a strong bite “very hard”;
“It shook my head,” he said of the shark. “By the time I looked down, it was gone and all I saw was red.
“Even before I looked down, I knew I had been bitten by a shark. I went into business mode, like, ‘I’m back to the beach.’ ”
He rode the waves onto the coast, and the 16-year-old surfer and her father rushed to help, calling him the 911.
“I had my arms on my head…I was trying to prevent my arteries from erupting,” Bender said, adding that some of his forearms “has no skin.”
He realized that he could use the 16-year-old surfboard leash as a tourniquet, and his friends helped him wrap it in his arms.
“It really stopped the bleeding,” he said. “It’s good to wear a thong, [unlike] myself. “
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Bender prayed before he paddled out and asked God to keep him safe through his surfing.
“He kept me safe overall, and I feel like he’s glorious throughout this, because it’s a miracle that there’s no pain in my arm.”
