‘I was in shock’: Woman describes being bitten by a shark

(KTVT) – A Texas woman who was bitten by a shark at South Padre Island is speaking out about her ordeal.

Tabitha Sullivent was one of four people bitten there over the Fourth of July holiday.

Her husband also suffered a bite while trying to help her.

Before the encounter, Sullivent said there were four people, including herself and her daughter, in the water.

”All I saw was something gray in the water, and so I just kicked at it because I thought, ‘Oh, my God! It’s a huge fish,’ and it was coming at us,” she said.

Sullivent said she tried to kick at it when it grabbed her leg.

“I think I was just in shock,” she said. “It’s like I could feel numbness, I guess, is the best way to describe it.”

She said her husband fought the shark and was rewarded with two bites.

“It was crazy, kind of surreal still,” Sullivent said. “I have movement in my toes. I have movement in my ankle. My bone structure is good. I’m gonna probably need physical therapy for sure.”

Sullivent said her survival was miraculous.

“Somebody or something was definitely looking over us,” she said.

Sullivent will need multiple surgeries, but doctors believe she will be able to keep her leg and walk again.

According to data from the Florida Museum of Natural History’s International Shark Attack File, the U.S. leads the rest of the world in unprovoked shark bites.

In 2023, there were 36 recorded shark bites in the U.S., which was a decrease from the previous year’s 41 recorded incidents.

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