Shark bites off left arm of teenage Kaua'i surfer
• Teen surfer was destined for pro circuit before attack
• Losing limb need not end career, say experts
By Jan TenBruggencate
Advertiser Kaua'i Bureau
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| A shark estimated at 12 to 15 feet bit into Bethany Hamilton's surfboard and took most of her left arm in an attack yesterday morning at Tunnels on Kaua'i's north shore.
Jan Tenbruggencate • The Honolulu Advertiser |
"One of our precious young people was attacked by a shark," said Kaua'i Fire Department Battalion Chief Bob Kaden, choking up at a news conference yesterday.
The young surfer, a rising star, had been surfing the West Reef area fronting Tunnels Beach in Ha'ena with her best friend, fellow competitor Alana Blanchard, 13, and Blanchard's father, Holt.
There had been considerable rain, but the water was clear, said Kaden, who has been teaching his own daughter to surf.
Surfers said a large shark had been seen in the area a few days earlier, but Kaden said no one saw the 7:30 a.m. attack. "There was no warning," he said.
A surfer reported hearing Bethany scream in pain or shock and then yell to warn others, Kaden said.
"She yelled, 'Shark! Shark!' At first the people around her thought she was kidding. Then they saw her trying to paddle herself to shore with one arm," he said.
She had lost her arm from just below the shoulder, according to a statement issued by her family.
Her board had a gaping hole on its left side, 17 inches wide at the rail and extending to within an inch of the board's center stringer.
Fellow surfers quickly put her on another board and began paddling her the several hundred yards to shore. Family friend Holt Blanchard used a surf leash to apply a tourniquet to stop the bleeding.
"Bethany's mother, Cheri Hamilton, attributes Holt's quick action to saving her daughter's life," the family statement said.
Bethany was carried ashore on a surfboard and placed in a pickup truck to await the ambulance. She remained conscious, Kaden said. The tourniquet, direct pressure on the wound and the effects of shock reduced the bleeding, he said. An ambulance crew started intravenous fluids as soon as it arrived.
She was taken to Wilcox Hospital, where the family said "she is expected to recover." The statement added: "The Hamiltons thank Jesus Christ for preserving Bethany's life and they ask for everyone's prayers."
Bobby Cocke, owner of the Kai Kane classic surf shop in Hanalei, who has known Bethany and her family all her life, said he fully expects Bethany to be back in competitive surfing.
"She's going to become the world's champion. She's got drive. She's real sweet. I think her potential is still there," he said.
Bethany, who is home-schooled, surfs on the team of Hanalei Surf Co. owner Charlie Cowden.
Cowden was at the hospital with the family yesterday. He said the attack is getting national attention. "Everybody's just shocked. Everybody in the whole surfing community is calling to support her," he said.
| • | Safety tips
The following measures reduce the risk of being bitten by a shark: • Don't swim alone Source: Department of Land and Natural Resources, Advertiser archives |
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Although no one reported seeing the shark, and the tooth imprints on the board have not yet been studied, most surfers and firefighters believe it was a tiger shark because of some classic characteristics: a single attack in the surf zone near dawn or dusk, with no follow-up.
Acting fire Capt. Steve Fountain at the Hanalei substation, which responded to the attack, said fishermen who saw Bethany's surfboard estimated the shark could have been 12 to 15 feet long.
Firefighters on jet-powered watercraft and a rescue boat unsuccessfully searched the waters at Tunnels for Bethany's arm in hopes it could be reattached.
"We saw one big shark wriggling across the reef," one firefighter said.
This is the fourth time in 20 years that a Kaua'i surfer has had a limb amputated by a shark. Three previous cases involved body boarders; three attacks occurred in October. The locations are spread across the island — on the west and south sides, and two on the north shore.
Joe Thomson was body boarding off Princeville on Oct. 18, 1985, when a shark took off his right forearm and a corner of his board in a quick single attack. And like yesterday's attack, the missing limb was not recovered.
Michael Coots lost the lower portion of his right leg Oct. 28, 1997, while bodyboarding at Kaiokapua, or Major's Bay, off the Pacific Missile Range Facility.
And Hokuanu Aki lost his left foot March 25, 2002, while body boarding at Po'ipu. In both of those cases, the surfers had to fight with the sharks to break free.
Reach Jan TenBruggencate at jant@honoluluadvertiser or (808) 245-7825.
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Teen surfer was destined for pro circuit before attack
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| Bethany Hamilton, 13, shown here in a junior lifeguard competition at Ala Moana Beach Park in August, lost her left arm from just below the shoulder in yesterday's attack.
Richard Ambo • The Honolulu Advertiser |
Only 13, she already was known in the surfing world before being attacked by a large shark off Kaua'i's north shore yesterday.
"She was a shoo-in to become a pro," said Jack Shipley, longtime head judge of the Hawai'i Amateur Surfing Association. "There are only a few kids every year who you can say are guarantees. She's one of them."
Hamilton's left arm was severed in the attack, but she is expected to recover.
"It really stinks that this happened," said Rochelle Ballard, a top-ranked female professional surfer raised on Kaua'i. "I've seen her grow up into this incredible surfer, and something like this happens ... the thing to remember is that she is a great surfer, not was. Her potential to become a pro is still there."
Hamilton is a home-school student from Hanalei. She is the top-ranked female surfer in her age group on Kaua'i, and has consistently beaten older girls and women in amateur competitions in the past two years.
Last summer, she had one of the most successful runs of any amateur surfer in Hawai'i.
In May, she won her division in the prestigious Local Motion /Ezekiel Surf Into Summer event at the Ala Moana Bowl. The contest is one of the biggest in the state, and Hamilton won the girls/ women division, open to all ages.
In June, Hamilton placed second in the open women's division of the National Scholastic Surfing Association (NSSA) National Championships at San Clemente, Calif. She also was named an NSSA surfer/scholar for her 3.8 grade-point average.
In July, Hamilton placed third in the girls shortboard division and second in the girls longboarding division at the United States Surfing Federation (USSF) National Championships at Oceanside, Calif.
"I'm always telling her to give up the longboarding, because she can be a top pro in shortboarding," Shipley said. "But she's that good. She can pull off both."
Just last week, Phil Irons — father of world champion Andy Irons, who also is from Hanalei —met with Hamilton's parents to discuss Bethany's pro potential, he said.
"They wanted to know how to deal with sponsors and stuff like that," Irons said. "They were putting their efforts into seeing Bethany make it as a pro, and she had all the potential to do it. That's what makes this so tragic."
At a contest sponsored by the Irons family earlier this year, Hamilton was one of five competitors to win a trip to the Mainland for outstanding performance.
Bruce Irons, Andy's brother and also an internationally known surfer, said he had surfed with Hamilton last week.
"Bruce and Andy know all the kids (in Hanalei)," Phil Irons said. "They know that Bethany is one of the best girl surfers out there."
Hamilton also participated in the Rochelle Ballard Surf Camp for girls earlier this year.
"She stands out not just because of her surfing, but because of the kind of person she is," Ballard said. "She's this really cute, bright girl who didn't deserve something like this."
Reach Dayton Morinaga at dmorinaga@honoluluadvertiser.com or 535-8101.
— Dayton Morinaga, Advertiser staff writer
• • •
Losing limb need not end career, say experts
| • | Recent shark attacks
2003 Oct. 5, Kihei, Maui — A woman was bitten while swimming off Cove Park near a fishing net, suffering two deep, half-inch lacerations to her right knee and other scrapes. June 24, Makua — A man snorkeling with dolphins was bitten on his right foot. May 10, Kailua, Big Island — A man suffered multiple cuts and other injuries to his right lower calf down to his heel after being attacked while swimming in calm waters. 2002 Nov. 17, Honokowai, Maui — A woman was bitten around her right shoulder and nearly lost her right hand in an attack near Ka'anapali. Oct. 30, Kihei — A woman swimming in turbid water was bitten on the left foot. Sept. 27, Kahala — A surfer escaped injury when bumped by a tiger shark that bit the board. Sept. 16, Princeville, Kaua'i — A bodyboarder was uninjured, spotting a shark fin just before the board was ripped away. Aug. 28, Kewalo — A surfer was bitten on the left foot while diving under a wave. June 11, Anini Beach, Kaua'i — A surfer was uninjured after a shark approached from behind and bit the side of the board. March 25, Brennecke Beach, Kaua'i — A teenager lost his left foot after an attack in murky waters. Jan. 1, Olowalu, Maui — A snorkeler was bitten on the buttocks by a tiger shark observed before and after the attack in clear water. |
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Many children who suffer amputations are "absolutely" able to resume their activities, said Elton Bacon, manager of the Orthotics and Prosthetics Department at Shriners Hospital for Children.
"Kids are so great. They want to get back with their friends," Bacon said.
Fixing the emotional and psychological pain of an amputation, particularly one caused by a traumatic event such as a shark attack, will be more difficult.
And if Hamilton is a typical teen girl struggling with body-image issues, the loss of a limb is "huge," said Andi Kubota, care coordination manager at Shriners, who works with the hospital's nurses and social workers dealing directly with families.
Hamilton lost most of her left arm when a large shark bit through her surfboard. A family friend who was surfing at the same spot was able to stop the bleeding using a surfboard leash as a tourniquet.
The surfer's young age and physical condition will work to her advantage, said Jean Lane, a physical therapist who works with amputees on Maui for the Rehab Hospital of the Pacific.
"Obviously, she's athletic, and being younger she'll heal faster, and the other muscles will kick in a lot faster. So there's some good stuff happening," Lane said.
"The emotional part of it will be tough. She'll have to be a resilient young woman. Once she's over the body-image part, she should be fine."
Lane dealt with several shark-bite victims when she worked at Maui Memorial Medical Center. She said the immediate concerns for a physical therapist are to help the patient restore flexibility, strength and range of motion to the injured area.
If the teenager decides to use a prosthesis to replace her left arm, there are a wide range of highly advanced, lightweight devices available, Lane said. The artificial limbs "are about as close to fully functioning as you can get," although they lack sensation, she said.
Bacon said it normally takes six to eight weeks for an amputation wound to heal. The recovery phase, including occupational therapy, in which a patient learns how to use a prosthetic device, could take days, weeks or months. "It takes a lot of coordination and rethinking on how to do things," he said.
Kubota said young amputees are encouraged to pick up their routines and return to as many of their former activities as possible, with accommodations as needed. "We don't want them to say, 'I can't do this anymore,' " she said.
In fact, Kubota said she couldn't recall a single case in which one of her pediatric patients didn't resume an active, full life.
"They all have a bumpy road — that's a given. There is no smooth, perfect world when they have an amputation. But the outcomes are all good, and they all get back on track."
If Hamilton needs inspiration, she can look to Hokuanu Aki, who was 17 and a senior at Kaua'i High School when surgeons amputated his left leg above the knee after he was attacked by a shark March 25, 2002, while body boarding at Brennecke Beach in Po'ipu.
Six weeks later, Aki was back in class, driving, dancing and reigning over his school's May Day pageant as king.
Reach Christie Wilson at cwilson@honoluluadvertiser.com or (808) 244-4880.
— Christie Wilson, Neighbor Island editor
